The Curse
by Seamistery
Summary: While hiding out with Team Avatar on Ember Island, an unexpected curse leaves both Katara and Zuko with switched bending. With the final fight fast approaching, the two benders must quickly master their new elements in order to protect themselves and win the war. However, their first step towards this is accepting the other as their new bending teacher. (Eventual Zutara)
1. Chapter 1

It was another lovely day at the Ember Island beach house. The air was clear and carried the scent of the sea within the wake of its breeze, while the ocean contrasted the bright red hue of the house as it sparkled in response the bright fire nation sun. What would usually be considered an unbearably hot summer day in the Fire Nation was not the case here. There was a continuous wind that effortlessly glided across the vast sea in an effort to chase away the usual humidity that plagued other parts of the nation. Any visitor would describe such an atmosphere as the epitome of serenity, the perfect combination of stimulating sunlight enhanced by the agreeable temperature.

_Yes,_ Katara thought, _I suppose the Fire Nation does have its good points_-

Suddenly, she was quickly drawn out of her musings as a fireball flew past her, leaving a trail of unnerving heat too close to her face. Stunned by the surprise appearance of fire, she gripped a neighboring pillar before nearly tumbling off the stone steps and introducing her face to the courtyard floor. Following the direction from which the fireball came, she was hardly surprised to see an embarrassed Aang scratching his bald head as a nearby Zuko had his palm resting on his forehead in a irritated fashion.

"Sorry Katara, I didn't see you there! Are you okay?" Aang shouted from afar, grinning sheepishly.

Katara simply shrugged and smiled, trying not display just how unnerved she previously was. "Its fine Aang, I'm alright!" she replied.

Though she had originally been worried when Aang started to learn firebending again (considering his history with the element) she came to realize that part of him being able to master it involved her confident support… even if a former enemy was teaching him. However, Katara tried to no let Zuko's position in the Gaang bother her anymore. This of course often resulted in her having to constantly remind herself that she had forgiven him in her own way. Zuko had proven himself more than trustworthy after assisting Sokka in rescuing her father, helping her to find her mother's killer, and of course preparing Aang to defeat the Fire Lord. Yet, there were still moments when Katara's maternal instincts subconsciously told her to watch over the Avatar during his firebending lessons. That was why she found herself sitting outside today, trying to relax while acting as if the sparring firebenders were a casual occurrence.

Aang glanced down at the stone ground of the courtyard before hesitantly returning his grey gaze back to Katara. "You know how I feel about firebending around you Katara.. maybe you should could go relax inside or –"

"Please Aang, I'm fine, I just decided that.." Katara blue eyes nervously darted around in thought "…I could learn a few things about firebending! What better way to understand your enemies than by understanding their moves, right?" Katara was content with her statement and thought surely that it would be a good enough excuse. Zuko however, just raised a curious eyebrow in response, clearly aware that she was up to something.

Aang's faced brightened, excited by her statement. "That's great Katara! Maybe if we have some time left over Zuko or I could personally show you a couple of firebending techniques!"

"Sure, that sounds great" Katara replied half-heartedly.

And so, Katara continued to observe the rest of Aang's lesson, always keeping her eyes trained on Zuko when he released well-aimed fire at Aang. Aang of course had drastically improved during the last couple of weeks and was always able to effectively counter Zuko's offensive moves. Whenever the boys broke for a quick break Aang was always buzzing with excitement. He would often asked Zuko if he "saw that defensive move" or if he thought it was hard to "handle his return fire". Zuko usually gave a short and simple response before deeming that their break time was over.

_Would it hurt to provide more positive reinforcement?_ Katara thought as she continued to watch Aang and Zuko. When Aang practiced his waterbending with her she always made sure to smile when he executed a move correctly, or point out what techniques he preformed excellently at the close of their practices. No, Zuko and her were as different as the elements they wielded. The Fire Prince was harsh and demanding, much like his fire, while Katara was gentle and graceful, similar to the water she commanded. As Zuko preformed a quick kick that produced a large flame, Katara wondered what it would have been like to be born a firebender. Was it more physically demanding? Did firebenders get burned by their own flame? These were all the questions that occupied the waterbender's mind.

"Katara!" a distant male voice yelled, pulling her attention away from her thoughts. She whipped her head around in the direction of the voice to see Sokka quickly stumbling to reach her sitting form.

"What is it Sokka?" Katara asked glancing up at her now panting brother.

"When I went into the pantry to grab some jerky for a snack, I looked everywhere, but I realized that we're out!" Sokka exclaimed, nearly on the verge of tears as he desperately explained his case to Katara.

Katara rolled her azure eyes, "Well eat something other than meat for a change, it might even be good for you". _Would it hurt to be a little healthy for once?_

Sokka simply stood there as his eyebrows quickly approached his hairline, while his crumpled face displayed just how horrified he was by her words. "Come on Katara, we're going to be fighting the Fire Lord soon and I don't know if I'll have enough energy if I go _meatless_!" Sokka practically yelled.

_Yet somehow Aang's fighting has been just fine without meat _Katara thought as she considered Sokka's theory. Then again, Katara knew that she was no longer speaking with her brother, but rather his stomach. Yup, when it came to Sokka's appetite there was no way to effectively handle it until you just gave in to what he wanted. This theory had been reaffirmed through their journeys around the world.

"Okay, okay. Just grab some money off the kitchen counter and go buy some more of your _precious_ meat," Katara said trying to calm down her hunger-driven brother.

Instead of immediately sprinting inside to get the money, Katara was shocked to see Sokka remain where he was. After a moment of uncommon silence he began to nervously play with his thumbs, attempting to avoid his sister's gaze. Katara narrowed her eyes, knowing there was something Sokka wasn't telling her. "Okay what's going? For you to be quiet, something very bad must have happened" she said.

Sokka shot her a surprised looked before suddenly finding the floor very interesting. "Well you see… funny thing you should say that, because I just might have used that money to buy some yummy jerky I found yesterday" Sokka said while attempting to smile as if he didn't just tell Katara that their savings were gone.

Katara eyes quickly enlarged in shock as her mouth simultaneously feel open ready to let her tell her brother just how she felt about his little shopping spree.

"Wait! You're telling me that you used the last of our money to feed your meat cravings! Again!" Katara yelled, shocked at her brother's foolishness. "Sokka, that money was the only thing we had to last us until Sozin's Comet." Katara knew that he brother has an unusual obsession with meat, however she never knew just how much everyone else could suffer from it.

Sokka took a step back while holding his hands out, attempting to placate his frustrated sister. "I'm sorry okay! I should have paid more attention when I told the vendor to give me the best meat he had! I was just so hungry and-"

Sokka just continued on weaving his tale as the waterbender paused to grasp her forehead for a moment, trying to contain herself. _Come on Katara let's be rational! We may not have meat, but maybe there is still enough food to sustain us _she mentally reasoned.

"Oh, and Katara?"

"What Sokka?" she said peeking between her fingers as they rested on her forehead.

"There's no food left in the pantry.."

"…"

"Katara?"

"Sokka, tell me-" Katara's voice took on a eerily controlled tone "-what are we supposed to eat for dinner tonight, or for breakfast tomorrow, or the meal after that?" Katara questioned, her dread quickly growing.

Sokka stood his ground thinking for a moment before suddenly adopting a serious look of determination and snapping his fingers. "Well I guess it'll be meat because I'm getting a job like last time!" Sokka confidently replied." I'll just go into town and look for some work. Don't worry sis, soon we'll be able to eat all the jerky we could ever want!" Sokka happily concluded as if what he just said was easily attainable.

Katara sighed and leaned back on her arms. The last time Sokka tried to get a job things didn't go too smoothly, Aang and her ended up having to save him from being drowned by a typhoon, while nearly dying in the process. However, they truly needed the money if they were going to last until Sozin's Comet. It would be terrible if history remembered Team Avatar for being defeated by hunger, rather than the Fire Lord.

"Alright, but we still need dinner tonight," the waterbender trained her eyes on the horizon in thought. Katara knew that without money, one of them was probably going to have to actually search for something to eat. With Aang training, Zuko helping him, her brother needing to find a job, Toph do who knows what, and Suki trying to gain local information about the Fire Nation, that somebody was probably going to be her.

"I guess I can go see if there are any fruit trees nearby." While on Ember Island, Katara had seen her fair share of exotic fruits for sale by the vendors in town. Assuming that these fruits were fresh, they were most likely being grown elsewhere on the island. With any luck, Katara hoped that if she explored beyond the beach house she might stumble upon something edible. _Yup, its back to the good old days _Katara thought.

"Okay, but at least take Zuko with you, he knows his way around this island," Sokka said gesturing the sparring firebender.

Katara raised an eyebrow at her older sibling. Zuko? Katara definitely felt that she didn't need someone to hold her hand while she looked around the forest, least of all the brooding firebender. When they were on their mission to find the Southern Raiders she teamed up with Zuko out of purpose, not because she truly wanted to be stuck alone with him. The whole mission might have been immensely awkward if it had not been for Katara's determination to avenge her mother. Little else mattered during their search, allowing very little time for a true friendship to blossom. Did she trust him? Yes. Did she feel comfortable around him? Not exactly. No matter what, they were still as different as night and day which gave Katara a reason to believe that they could never bond like how the rest of the Gaang had with him.

"Please Sokka, I don't need Zuko to babysit me while I look around for some fruit. I've spent enough time on this island to know my way around," She explained.

"Come on Kat-"

"Plus I happen to be a _master_ waterbender," Katara confidently added, cutting off Sokka.

Sokka was unconvinced. "But what if you get lost or something! We could all be heading to fight the Fire Lord and you could still be wandering around the jungle! Also, who is going to mend my socks if that happens?"

Katara mouth fell open in astonishment at her brother, "Okay that's ridiculous Sokka. Look-" the waterbender gestured her tanned hand towards the sparring boys "-Zuko is clearly busy, so just let him be. I've wandered off during our travels to find food many times, this will be no different, I promise."

"Really, because I remember you wandering off and getting caught by Zuko and pirates that one time," Sokka exclaimed.

"Well look, he's on our side now-" Katara held her hand above her line of sight before dramatically looking around, "-and I don't really see any pirates."

Sokka stared intently into his sister's determined blue eyes, realizing she wasn't going to back down. Sokka knew that when Katara made up her mind it was immensely difficult to sway her decision. Like his stomach, Katara always wanted things to go her way no matter the possibly negative outcome. Sokka sighed before drooping his body in defeat, "Fine, but you better be back before sundown."

Katara gave her brother a small smile, elated at her victory. "Great, now while I'm looking for some food, you can go get that _job_ you were talking about." Not waiting to see her brother's reaction to her words, Katara gracefully rose to her feet before dusting off her red skirt. Now fully facing Zuko's firebending form, Katara once again scoffed at the idea that her own brother thought that she needed Zuko to find a couple fruits. However, she had no time to stand around all day and stare at the stubborn young firebender, no, she had mouths to feed. Embracing her motherly instincts, her feet began to sweep towards the back door that lead out of the courtyard.

Katara paused before stepping out of the beach house's boundary, quickly whipping her long hair around to see Sokka. "Oh, and make sure to let everyone know I'm out," Katara called over shoulder.

"Will do!" her brother yelled back.

And with a final step through the doorway, Katara disappeared into the Ember Island jungle.

* * *

><p>"Hey Sokka! Whatcha reading?" Aang cheerfully asked as he peered over the older boy's shoulder.<p>

"Huh? Oh just the local paper with places that are hiring on the island." Sokka casually replied as his eyes continued to scan the print. He rested the scroll swiftly on his lap before beaming at the airbender, "You see, pretty soon we're going to have all the money we could ever want. All have to do is get a job and BAM! Money in my hand." Sokka explained as he held his palm out imagining the weight of gold resting on it.

"And why exactly do you want a job now of all times?" Zuko's raspy voice wondered as he joined the Avatar and Water Tribe warrior in the living room.

"What? Can't a guy have a career?" Sokka asked over his shoulder.

Zuko raised his good eyebrow before crossing his arms. "Hate to break it to you Sokka, but we have a war to win. We don't really have time to play house and build up our _careers_". The firebender looked down with a slightly forlorn look upon his face. "We may not even last that long."

Sokka and Aang looked at each other with worried looks, daring the other to react first. After a couple of moments of silence, neither boy could restrain themselves any longer before they both suddenly burst into a fit of laughter. "Come on Zuko, quit being so dramatic! Besides if we won the war I doubt you would have a career, or does being a spoiled prince count?" Sokka questioned. The truth was that both the boys knew that Zuko's words possessed a hidden truth. The weight of the war and its destruction had always weighed heavily on the Gaang's shoulders, only they saw their friendships and positive outlook as a method to somehow escape the horrors they had faced. Like Zuko suggested, having a career was a concept they rarely considered. However, desperate times called for desperate measures.

"I'm not joking Sokka!" Zuko insisted.

Aang looked down at Sokka's sitting form, "Yeah, I guess Zuko has a point, maybe we should get Katara to talk some sense into him!" The young airbender then allowed his gray eyes to causally look around the room in search of the waterbender. "Hey where is Katara anyway?"

"Oh Katara? She left about 20 minutes ago to find some fruit in the jungle." Sokka said, choosing to leave out why.

Zuko's amber eyes suddenly widened before intently setting his gaze upon the Water Tribe boy, "What do you mean _get fruit in the jungle_?"

Sokka was not one to lie often, but he knew for now he couldn't tell Zuko why she was _really_ out in the jungle. No, Sokka knew that by getting a job he would eventually pay Zuko back for the money he brought with him. If he presented him with the money he had earned working, then hopefully all would be forgiven a little more smoothly. Sokka didn't want any trouble, especially considering he was beginning to get along with Zuko.

"She just thought we could use some fresh fruit for dinner tonight, that's all," Sokka plainly said.

Zuko looked somewhat angry as he began to pace the room, clenching and unclenching his pale fists. As the Fire Nation Prince walked around, Sokka and Aang once again looked at each other with questioning looks, wondering what could possibly affect Zuko so much about Katara just looking for some fruit.

Aang glanced at the firebender with worried eyes. "Zuko what's wrong? She'll be back soon enough."

Zuko stopped in his tracks, before turning back to the other two boys. "If she truly went off into the jungle looking for fruit, she may not," he said dryly.

Sokka jumped out of his armchair before rushing towards the Zuko in his worry. "What do you mean she may not come back? Katara's always been okay on her own for the most part."

It was true, Katara did have a talent for getting out of a pinch from time to time.

Zuko avoided Sokka's concerned eyes, choosing to observe the floor. "You see on Ember Island most of the fruit and vegetables are grown and sustained on the western half of the Island were the volcanic soil is more fertile. We on the other hand, are living on the eastern end where very little is cultivated, except for one place."

"What one place?" Aang eagerly questioned.

Zuko looked up at Aang and Sokka with a serious look upon his face. "The monkey shrine" he muttered darkly as if it was something he himself feared.

Sokka raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Um the monkey shrine? No offense Zuko, but how is a shrine going to harm Katara exactly?" Sokka asked doubfully.

"Listen, I know it sounds crazy, but there are unique fruit trees that seem to only grow at the shrine, _cursed _fruit trees. All those who have picked from the fruit trees at the shrine have faced horrible fates. Once a servant of ours went to take a calm walk in the forest before finding the shrine and returning with some fruit. We had heard the legends, but we thought nothing of them until the next day she grew ill and passed." Zuko tried to further convince Sokka, "In the Fire Nation it is said that the monkey spirit of the shrine is both mischievous and highly dangerous as he protects his fruit trees. If Katara was to pick a fruit, who knows what the spirit may do."

"Okay, but what happened to your servant could have been a coincidence, right? How are you so certain it was a _monkey_ spirit?" Sokka skeptically asked.

Zuko looked offended at the Water Tribe boy's quick conclusion. "It had happened before, there were many poor citizens who would seek out the trees for food before returning with either mental or physical illnesses that sometimes did or did not kill them. One thing was always the same though, they were always cursed _after _picking the monkey spirit's fruit," the firebender said defensively.

Sokka couldn't help it anymore and allowed himself to erupt into a fit of laughter. "HAHA… but a spirit…a _monkey_ spirit… hurt Katara? You clearly don't know my sister!"

Aang thoughtfully looked at Zuko before frowning and turning to face Sokka. "Zuko may have a point, spirits have been know to become vengeful when humans desecrate their sacred sites. Katara's waterbending would do little against a spirit's abilities."

Zuko nodded in response to the Avatar. "That's why I'll see if I can catch up to Katara and find her before she stumbles into the shrine."

"Great I'll come with you" Aang offered.

Zuko shook his head. "No, I can move faster on my own, you just stay here and I'll bring her back."

"But I can talk to the spirits, maybe I can help!" the airbender insisted.

"Well hopefully if I can move quickly enough she won't have to deal the monkey spirit at all." Zuko had spent many years increasing his tracking skills, whether it be looking for the Avatar, or finding his next meal while he was on the run in the Earth Kingdom. If he could solely focus on finding Katara and not worry about Aang, he knew he would be far more efficient in his task.

Zuko began to make his way towards the door, "If I'm not back in two hours, then come looking for us. The shrine is about a 30-minute walk from the entrance to the jungle. There is a worn path leading from the beach house that if you follow it, you will eventually find the site."

Aang continued to frown at the firebender. "Alright, but please bring her back safe," he said trying not to let his worry seep into his voice.

"Don't worry I'll find her," Zuko said seriously before stepping out into the Fire Nation heat once more.

Aang turned back around to see a still laughing Sokka clutching his chest, now leaning against the wall to support himself. He gradually looked up at the airbender with tears in his eyes.

"Hey, where did Zuko go?"

* * *

><p><em>AN: Please remember to review, review, review! If you guys think this is going to be an interesting story, please let me know and I'll make sure to keep writing! :D_


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Avatar the Last Airbender, now on with the story!

* * *

><p><em>Wow, for a tropical environment, this jungle sure doesn't have a lot of fruit around here<em> Katara thought as she used her waterbending to slice through the foliage blocking her path. As she worked, sweat constantly dripped down into her eyes, stinging them while her loose hair clung to the back of her neck. Every few moments she would have to stop to bend some sweat away before trying to neaten her now frizzy hair. Ever since Katara had left the beach house, she had been endlessly struggling to get through the dense jungle. Between the hot temperature, bugs, and claustrophobic environment, any open space would have been greatly welcomed by the waterbender. Overall, she had never felt so battered by nature anywhere else. _Leave it to the Fire Nation's nature to do this to me_ Katara ironically thought.

"Stupid brother" she sliced through some vines, "Stupid jungle," her waterbending began to become more haphazard, "Stupid-AH!"

After cutting through a particularly thick set of vines, a statue of a fearsome looking monkey suddenly appeared, startling Katara. The monkey statue was about six feet high, bearing its large fangs as it wielded a menacing looking spear. Katara had never seen a depiction of a monkey before; animals that were not hybrids were very rare in this world, an example being the Earth King's "bear". Nonetheless, the statue was a strange sight that seemed out of place in a remote area of the jungle.

Katara studied the statue for a few moments longer. _Did someone lose their artwork or something?_ Katara thought as she peered around the jungle. _I'm not one for art, but it looks like it was made in a strange Fire Nation style_ she mused before realizing that she still had to find something to eat. Making her way around the strange statue, Katara groaned as she was met with a cliff face, signaling a dead end.

"Great now what?" she audibly asked herself, looking up the length of the cliff. Katara knew that there was no way she was going to climb a cliff after the fun she had in the jungle.

Observing the surrounding area, she noticed that about ten feet away from where she was standing the green jungle floor seemed a little discolored. Katara walked over and began to swipe her feet at the ground before uncovering what appeared to be cobblestones (Much to the distaste of her sandaled feet which were now caked in dirt). Upon further inspection, the waterbender realized that though they appeared old and hidden, the trace of what looked like a path was created with them. _Great! Maybe this path leads somewhere!_ Katara thought as she began to follow it. As she started her more bearable walk, Katara kept her eyes trained on the forest floor in order to follow the subtle indication of the trail.

The trail continued along, hugging the cliff face as if it dared not return to the dense jungle, for which Katara was grateful. Eventually the path seemed to suddenly stop after around five minutes of walking. Confused, Katara pulled her eyes away from the ground and was suddenly met with what looked like a tunnel. The tunnel was cut right into the cliff face, and appeared very deep as Katara looked down into its depths. Unfortunately, the outside light did little to expose what was hidden inside.

Katara sighed and waterbended some sweat off her brow, _again_. _Now what?_ She wondered. If she went into the creepy cave, Katara knew that she risked encountering dangerous animals or maybe even dangerous _people_ that may live down there. _Come on Katara, why would you even consider going into the cave? You'll probably never come out_, she dreadfully thought. However, Katara figured that the tunnel lead somewhere, and to get to that somewhere, this tunnel could be an easy way route. Katara smiled at the thought of not having to endlessly waterbend her way through the foliage and swat at the persistent bugs. _You're going to help fight the Fire Lord soon, you can't be afraid of some tunnel_ she concluded.

Without another moment's hesitation, Katara began to fashion a torch out of what she could find and a small piece of her skirt. After creating a fire with a couple of sharp rocks, the waterbender once again found herself looking into the endless darkness that sat before her. Whether it was the logical thing to do or not, something about the tunnel drew her in. Even the faint wind snaking its way inside seemed to comfort and call her. Yes, entering this tunnel was somehow the right thing to do for Katara.

With a final swallow, she stepped inside.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, not too far behind Katara, Zuko was making fast progress following her trail. The firebender didn't even have to closely analyze possible footprints or broken branches. Based on the damage, the waterbender had been as graceful as a komodo-rhino while trying to explore the forest. The girl had practically made a hole right though everything that blocked her path.<p>

Running at a brisk, but careful speed, Zuko used his acrobatic abilities to quickly maneuver through the jungle. When encountering an unexpected tree root or boulder, he would grab a vine or branch to swing over the obstacle before collision. Zuko recalled how he often used these skills only when donning his Blue Spirit persona. He had to admit though, there was something therapeutic about moving in the moment and just allowing your body maintain a constant motion; each movement powered by the last. Zuko had Ty Lee's lessons to thank for these skills.

Continuing to make his way through the jungle, Zuko's mind began to wonder whether the Water Tribe girl had even found the shrine. This could be a wild goose-tortoise race for all he knew. The only reason he was worried that she was going to find the shrine was because the legends spoke of how the Spirit's domain attracted all those who were in search of something to eat. Katara had set out to find just that, so he knew that there was a large possibility that the Monkey Spirit may play upon her hunger. When they used to vacation on Ember Island, his mother always warned him and Azula to never venture into the forest. Legend or not, the Monkey Spirit was said to be a ruthless deity of the Sun Warriors that once inhabited the island. Night and day he would roam the jungle that surrounded his home, looking for humans to lure to his shrine.

He knew that Katara was a strong girl, he just wasn't sure if she could withstand the will of the spirits. The waterbender had impressed him as a skilled fighter and noble companion; only he wished that she were more comfortable around him. She was kind hearted and warm with her friends, but that warmth seemed to recede whenever he tried to talk with her. Though she became far more courteous after the Southern Raiders, he noticed how she seemed withdrawn around him.

_It's because you're not her friend_ his mind said.

He was well aware of why she felt the need to observe him during his lessons with Aang. He had picked up on why she decided to do this long ago, and he definitely knew it wasn't because she suddenly became interested in firebending. It was common knowledge that she had feelings for the young Avatar, which was exactly why she always looked out for him. Zuko had even experienced the extent of her feelings firsthand when she first threatened to kill him should he harm Aang. Though she had forgiven him in the end, he realized that now they were no longer enemies, but two awkward teenagers truly meeting each other for the first time. The firebender knew this needed to end soon since they were going to have to rely on one another when Sozin's Comet arrived. However for that to happen, she needed to learn to trust him more.

Pulling himself from his thoughts, Zuko noticed a clearing up ahead and increased his speed. Once he left the constricting atmosphere of the jungle, the famous Monkey statue, garbed in his Sun Warrior armor, stood before him. The firebender knew he was unfortunately getting close to the shrine, instantly realizing that Katara was likely heading there right now.

He had no time to think, he followed her footprints to the shrine's path and began to run.

* * *

><p>The tunnel was no walk in the park. Katara found the musty air as constricting as the jungle, while the chilling temperature bit into her exposed arms and midriff. Katara suddenly wished that she were no longer wearing her Fire Nation clothes, but her warm Water Tribe parka. Even the torch offered little warmth in the endless darkness and cold. <em>I knew this was a bad idea<em> she regretfully thought. Yet even now with the negative outcomes outweighing the positives, she could not turn back. The initial feeling that drew her kept urging her that it was only a little further she had to travel. She had this nagging feeling that what she desired lay at the end of this tunnel.

Her footsteps sounded with the beating of her heart as she pushed on. _Even the Cave of Two Lovers was far better than this_ she thought. If Katara was being honest with herself, she would admit that she had enjoyed her time alone with Aang in the caverns. To this day, Katara had always cherished the cave for being where they shared their kiss, _her_ first kiss. The waterbender knew that she had developed feelings for the Avatar, yet she wasn't sure if Aang and her could ever be something more than friends. The war constantly loomed over them, so for now she couldn't allow her fantasies to get the better of her.

As she pressed on, eventually a light at the end of the tunnel began to materialize. Relieved, Katara began to pick up the pace, elated at the prospect of fresh air and sunlight. After a few more minutes, she finally reached the exit. Without a moment's hesitation, she stepped outside into the blinding light. For a few seconds the waterbender could see little as her eyes adjusted to the bright outdoors. Once her pupils had completely shrunken, her eyes widened in utter shock.

Before her lay a beautiful bridge that connected the platform she was standing on to a small island. The sight immediately reminded her of the Spirit Oasis in the North Pole; only the bridge was a bright red instead of ivory. The water that surrounded the island was a bright blue that rivaled her cerulean eyes and sparkled brilliantly in the sunlight. From where she stood, she could make out a large building on the island that was made similarly to the bridge. Excited about this interesting find, she began to make her way across the bridge as the strange feeling once again claimed her, urging her to keep moving. As she walked, Katara noticed that both the lake and island were completely closed off from the rest the jungle by steep cliff faces. _I guess that's what the tunnel is for _Katara thought.

Stepping onto the island, she realized that the building appeared to be a spirit shrine of some sort. Right in the courtyard guarding the shrine was the same monkey statue that she had encountered outside the tunnel. Despite the beauty of its surroundings, Katara thought that the statue still appeared menacing, ready to pounce at any moment. Walking around it without sparing a second glance at its fearsome stone face, she noticed numerous trees growing along the shrine. Remembering that she had to find something to eat, she moved closer to them to investigate if they were fruit bearing trees. Katara immediately smiled when she saw numerous ripe moon peaches growing from its branches.

"Finally" she said before moving closer to the trees.

Katara frowned; the moon peaches were a little high up. _No matter_ she thought before drawing some water from the surrounding lake. Wielding the water like a whip, she slowly guided it towards one particularly large fruit.

"Okay easy does it Katara," she said trying to focus so she wouldn't accidently slice the fruit in half.

Finally with a quick flip of the wrist, the water sliced right through the fruit's stem causing it to fall right into it her waiting hand. Katara smiled at the moon peach resting in her palm. _Now that was easy._

"No!" she heard a male voice yell.

Katara pulled her attention away from the peach to see an exhausted looking Zuko panting while looking extremely worried. _Now why would he be worried?_ She wondered.

"Zuko?" she confusedly said. "What are you doing here?"

He wasn't even looking at her, but at the fruit in her hand. "Katara drop that peach right now, we need to get out of here," Zuko urged.

Katara frowned at the firebender. "What do you mean get out of here? It took me forever to find this place, so I intend to collect some moon peaches before I leave," she said heatedly.

"It isn't safe to pick from these trees, a dangerous spirit harms anyone who does," Zuko said as he golden eyes began to scan the area, "So we need to go before he realizes anything." Zuko strode up to Katara and grabbed her wrist to lead her away, but she kept her feet firmly rooted to the ground.

Katara frowned. "Now that's just ridiculous Zuko," she replied before shrugging her hand out of his grasp.

"No, unfortunately it's true," the firebender explained, "So we need to get of here, _now_."

_Spirits? Was it really possible for one to exist here?_ Katara wondered. Katara was well aware of the existence of spirits having seen them for herself, however she still had mouths to feed.

"Zuko, we need something to eat tonight and hopefully this _spirit_ can understand. Besides, just because a spirit is made out to be dangerous, it doesn't mean it is. It could be benevolent for all we know," Katara explained. "The spirits have always been misjudged by humans."

Zuko couldn't believe this girl, here they were waiting to get struck down by a spirit any moment now, and this girl was defending it. Katara's compassion truly knew know bonds, including the ones between the human and spirit worlds. However, he couldn't take the chance with this particular spirit.

He grasped her wrist once more in his desperation. "Come on Katara! I can't play this game with you all day! We need to go!" Zuko said losing his temper.

Katara just looked him right in the eye before uttering a simple "No," before angrily pulling her hand away from him.

Zuko couldn't believe how Katara was acting. The young women who he saw constantly step up to be a mother to all was now acting like a stubborn child! Despite her strange behavior, he knew they couldn't just wait around all day like sitting targets. Deciding that he could let his old Zuko determination show if it meant getting them out of here, in one swift movement he grabbed Katara and threw her over his shoulder.

Katara immediately began to squirm in his grasp and pound against his back with her small fists. "Put me down! Zuko I swear if you don't, I'll unleash a tsunami before you even realize what's happening!" she screamed.

Zuko grunted every time she tried to punch a wall through his back. "Katara..OW…quit it! This is for your own…OW.. GOOD!" _So much for being Prince Charming _Zuko thought through the pain.

"There is nothing good about you throwing me over your shoulder like a sack of flour!" she yelled. _Looks like the prince is going to witness a tidal wave after all_ Kataramentally professed.

True to her thoughts, she flipped her hands up and called upon numerous gallons of water from the lake before quickly slamming it into Zuko. The wave unfortunately knocked them both over, throwing them onto the grass and soaking them to the bone. Rising to her feet first, Katara swiped her wet hair out of her face and ran over to the moon peach.

Noticing her intentions, Zuko jumped to his feet and attempted to sprint towards the discarded fruit before she could. Just as she was about to grab it, he threw a fireball at her feet causing her to back up in surprise. Taking advantage of her surprise, Zuko grabbed the peach and pelted it as far as he could. With a soft "plop", the peach sank into the lake.

Katara turned to shoot Zuko a deadly glare. "How dare you Zuko! That was mine!" the waterbender yelled. Suddenly hate became the only emotion that registered to Katara. All other sense was discarded as anger pumped through her veins, urging her to teach Zuko a lesson for denying her something. Katara was unsure of why she suddenly felt the intense drive to fight Zuko so much; however, she discarded her concerns to smile at the thought of a rematch for the Spirit Oasis.

Sparing no time, Katara waterbended the water from her clothes before forming a sharp icicle and aiming it straight at Zuko's head. Zuko suddenly realized what she was doing and moved his head out of the icicle's path as it grazed his face. Immediately Zuko felt something warm trickle down his cheek and drop off of his chin. Placing his hand on the warm substance, he knew it was blood before he saw the scarlet color staining his pale palm.

Zuko was shocked.

He knew that Katara could be dangerous when she wanted to, but he never thought she was capable of drawing blood. Even when they were enemies and fought, she had never gone so far as she had today. She hadn't even touched one hair on her mother's killer's head when they had faced him. The kind, caring Katara he knew was not the girl that stood before him. There was a dangerous glint in her otherwise warm eyes that told him that something was clearly wrong. How she was acting didn't even come close to when she first threatened Zuko.

_She's probably been under the spirit's spell since the moment she picked that fruit _he dreadfully realized.

"Katara I'm not going to fight you," Zuko carefully said while putting up is hands to demonstrate his unwillingness to bend.

Katara laughed in a slow almost hysterical way. "You better fight me because if not, I'll end you right here, right now."

"You don't mean that Katara-"

"Of course I do, you pathetic firebender! The world would be better off with you gone anyway!" Katara started to gather water from the grass, "It's only a matter of time before you harm Aang and bring him to the Fire Lord! It's in your nature to harm people, to harm _me_!"

Though she was under a spell, Zuko realized that her darkest feelings were being brought to the forefront her mind and amplified. Zuko knew they weren't exactly friends, but he never realized just how negatively she could still think of him after everything they went through. Zuko was hurt when he realized that she still didn't trust him, and never likely would.

Zuko took a hesitant step towards the livid waterbender, still holding up his hands. "Katara you forgave me remember? I helped you find you're mother's killer-"

"Shut up!" she screamed.

Zuko blew steam out of his nose to calm down his growing impatience with Katara, spell or no spell. "This isn't even you talking! The Spirit's influence is doing this!" Zuko returned.

Suddenly a loud, slow clapping was heard high up in the branches above their heads. Both benders quickly looked up to find a translucent monkey clapping with a cheeky grin on his face.

"Now I wouldn't say the girl isn't completely at fault. I mean it was _her_ goal to steal my fruit in the first place. It's only fitting that she now suffer under my spell," The monkey said calmly.

Zuko narrowed his golden eyes at the creature. "Listen, we don't want any trouble, if you lift the spell and allow us to go, we won't return or take anything with us." Zuko had learned the hard way not to pick up what wasn't yours, especially after the golden egg incident.

The monkey leaned back against the trunk before lightly sighing, "Well you see… that's what they all say." In the next instant the spirit appeared behind Katara. As he began to circle around her he let his furry hands lightly grasp the ends of her hair before letting it slip through his fingers. "However the girl is very interesting… she says that humans misjudge spirits," the monkey slowly said. Katara didn't even seem to be registering what was happening. Her eyes were blank, likely due to the spirit's influence.

Zuko clenched his fists as he watched the Spirit continue to observe Katara in her unresponsive state. _No Zuko, restrain yourself, this is a spirit you're up against_ he told himself. Yet he didn't like the way the monkey spirit was looking at the Katara. _Come on Zuko, say something! Anything!_

"We're with the Avatar," Zuko blurted out.

The spirit paused before looking up at the Fire Prince with a grin. "The Avatar you say?"

"Yes."

"And is saying this supposed to somehow protect you?" the spirit asked curiously.

Zuko nodded. "We're working to help him return balance to the world, isn't that something you spirits want?"

The spirit softly sighed once more, "I suppose, but there's no fun without a little chaos, don't you think-" The monkey suddenly appeared in front of Zuko out of thin air, "-_Prince_ Zuko? You're people thrive on chaos."

Zuko kept a straight face as the spirit's silver eyes peered into his golden ones. Zuko knew that there was truth in the spirit's words, heck he even considered himself as someone who took part in his people's _chaos._ It was only earlier this year that he had been burning villages and chasing the Avatar, yet he knew deep down that he had changed. Now Zuko only fought for peace, not chaos.

As the monkey continued to carefully analyze him, Zuko felt his worry for both his and Katara's safety steadily increasing. People were one danger, but spirits were on a whole other level, a level that only Aang could possibly handle. _Perhaps I should have brought the kid with me anyway_ Zuko regretfully thought.

After the long silence the monkey smiled, displaying his large fangs. "Unfortunately for me, the Avatar's companions have the blessing of many spirits that would seek to destroy me should I kill you both," the creature drawled.

Zuko swallowed hard before deciding to question the spirit's words. "So does that mean you won't harm us?" he asked.

The creature smirked. "No, I suppose I won't harm you, or your pretty mate," the monkey said. Zuko chose to ignore that last statement about Katara in order to listen to whatever else the beast had to say. Suddenly the creature's eyes became very dark, "However, though I may not end your lives today, that doesn't mean I can't have my fun."

The Monkey Spirit's glowing silver eyes was the last thing Zuko saw before he blacked out.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Hey everybody! First I want to start off by thanking all of you guys who decided to review, favorite, and follow my story (these things are my fuel for writing btw!). Also I'm really happy that you like my story's interesting conflict. There is just so much possibility in this plot, so I'm really excited to finally put my ideas on paper (or keyboard?). I know I didn't get to the whole switched bending thing yet, but I promise you'll see it in the next chapter.

**Please remember to review! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

_I do not own ATLA_

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><p>Voices. That was the first thing that registered to Katara as she found herself floating in a dark abyss. In her mysterious dreamlike state, Katara felt entirely weightless as the strange voices softly whispered in the distance. It was nothing like the tunnel, this darkness was somehow both comforting and peaceful. There was no chill in the air, no vines and jungles to constrict her, just nothing at all. As the voices resumed their distant chatter, she suddenly desperately wanted to know what they were saying. Yet, every time she tried to focus, no discernable words were understood. Just when she was about to give up and let the calm darkness claim her once more, the voices seemed to come closer. As their volume increased, their strange foreign sounds morphed into one recognizable word.<p>

"Katara?" the voices called.

_That's my name, isn't it?_ She wondered.

Suddenly, her eyes flew open as a small hand connected with her face. "Ow!" she yelled as the impact's stinging sensation began to fully register. The strike caused Katara to bolt up into a sitting position as her hand instinctively went to caress her burning cheek. Now completely conscious, she began to rapidly blink in an effort to sharpen her eyesight that was largely unfocused due to the hit, sleep, or possibly both. When the world finally became clear, she was startled to find herself tucked in her bed at the beach house, surrounded by Aang and Toph.

_So it was all just a dream?_ Katara wondered._ The frustrating jungle, the unnerving tunnel, the beautiful shrine, all of it never happened?_ The waterbender was utterly confused, what she had experienced felt so real and tangible that it was strange for it have been a dream, and very vivid one at that. Yet here she was, nestled in her warm bed like nothing outside of her room's walls mattered, not even the war. She figured she must have just overslept again, a common occurrence. The moon often coaxed her into some nocturnal waterbending before leaving her with insomnia for the remainder of the night.

"Bout' time you woke up Sugar Queen" Toph drawled. "You can thank me later for waking you up. It was either that or one of Sokka's socks."

Katara blue eyes slowly swept between the earthbender and Aang, still quite dazed. "What?" was all she managed to say in her drowsy state.

Toph raised an eyebrow at the waterbender. "Wow, it seems like Sweetness is really out of it," she muttered.

Aang sighed before placing his hand on Katara's shoulder. The moment his worried eyes met Katara's, she realized that something was very wrong. His juvenile demeanor had vanished, as a surprisingly deep sadness inhabited his normally bright eyes. Aang was very rarely this serious, so for him to be acting this way meant something terrible had occured. All the while, Katara was very confused about what warranted such worry from the Avatar. The waterbender knew he couldn't possibly be upset over her little sleep in. She just hoped everyone was alright.

He gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, before his own show of strength betrayed him and she felt his hand start to tremble. Katara's own worry increased by tenfold as she gripped the Avatar's hand out of her own growing fear for what he was about to tell her.

"Katara you've been out for three days.. and we couldn't wake you up.." Aang explained, frightened by his own words.

"What!" she screeched. "Three days!? As in three _full_ days?"

"Yes," he quietly replied.

Katara pulled herself away from Aang as she knotted her hands in her untamed hair, trying to process the Avatar's words. "But why? I don't understand!" she exclaimed.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Toph plainly said.

Aang once again reached forward, this time lightly touching her arm. "Maybe you could start by telling us what happened at that shrine," he offered.

_The shrine?_ She wondered. _So the shrine was real, it wasn't a dream? _Suddenly all the memories came flooding back to Katara, the jungle, the tunnel, the bridge, the shrine, and something else that she couldn't quite remember. The memories' presence was deeply rooted in her mind, yet she couldn't decipher what exactly it was or meant. _Something else happened_ Katara thought as she scoured her memories, _something bad_, _something I need to remember right now!_

"Katara are you alright?" Aang asked as he noticed the confused look on the waterbender's face. He swallowed before hesitantly asking, "Did you meet the spirit?"

Katara's eyes widened as her mouth fell open in shock. _That's what it was _Katara realized. However instead of suddenly remembering the mysterious spirit like she hoped, her subconscious showed her images of her attacking Zuko and yelling hurtful things at him. _I can't believe it_,Katara thought, _I actually said those terrible things and tried to-_

"Where's Zuko?" she desperately asked, as she began to pull herself out from underneath the scarlet covers. Katara still felt quite light headed, but she knew that if she didn't apologize to Zuko the guilt of what she said would eat away at her conscience. Now that Zuko was on their side he didn't deserve how she acted, right? _No_, Katara thought, _I shouldn't treat Zuko that way, I shouldn't treat anyone that way_ her mind said. Yet why had the words rolled so easily off of her tongue? Why had her dismissible thoughts suddenly become accusations that seemed blown out of proportion? Was all she said just the darkest thoughts tucked away in her subconscious? Yet despite Katara's conflicting feelings, she knew that it was her duty as a healer to at least tend to the nasty gash her ice left him with. "I need to know how he's doing," the waterbender firmly stated.

As Katara tried to scramble off the bed, Aang quickly placed his hands on her shoulders to keep her seated, looking intently at her. "Zuko's alright for now, so first tell us what happened Katara," he urged.

"Come on Sugar Queen, you've been out for three days and we'd like to know at least why" Toph added.

Katara sighed as she sank back down onto the covers and folded her hands. For a few moments she just stared off into the distance, deep in thought. Katara was still confused by what she encountered, but she realized that she needed to put the puzzle pieces together for both her and her friend's sakes. With a deep breath, she began to explain her story to the best of her abilities. She talked about the statue, tunnel, shrine, and then when she got to the fruit trees, her memories once again became less clear.

"I finally found some fruit, but the moment Zuko found me and told me to leave it, I…" Did Katara have the guts to tell Aang how she had hurt Zuko again? He had been so pleased when she and Zuko finally made up that it broke her heart to imagine explaining how they had fought, _again_. The Gaang was supposed to be a well-oiled team that put aside their differences for the sake of the world, not a pair of stubborn teenagers that fought over hurt feelings, spell or no spell.

"You what?" Aang eagerly prompted.

"I was put under the spirit's spell," Katara said, avoiding Aang's eyes. "After that, I don't really remember anything".

"Did you see the spirit that did this to you?" he asked.

Katara closed her eyes for a moment, trying to recall whether she truly had or not. She had a strong suspicion that she had met the spirit right when her conscious memory started to dissipate. As she concentrated harder, she pushed herself to explore the deep recesses of her mind. Suddenly, the image of a large monkey glaring into her blue eyes with his glowing silver ones appeared behind her closed lids, clear as day.

"Yes" she said, snapping her eyes open in an attempt to banish the frightening memory. "I don't remember it talking, but it did look at me with these strange glowing eyes before I must have fainted. After that, I was waking up here."

"What do you think this weirdo did?" Toph asked, stepping forward.

Katara knit her eyebrows together in confusion. "I don't know…maybe Zuko does," she offered. "Also, how exactly did I end up here?" the waterbender inquired looking around. Since the moment she awakened, that question had been plaguing her mind. If Katara had been in such a dangerous situation, she did not understand how she even escaped with her life let alone safely tucked in bed as if the whole experience was a dream.

Aang spoke this time. "Zuko gave me instructions on where to maybe find you guys if you didn't return," he explained. "As it started to get late, I couldn't wait around any longer, so I convinced Toph and Sokka to come help me look for you guys. Eventually we found the shrine and the two of you were laying unconscious in the grass."

"Did you see the spirit yourself?" Katara asked, genuine curiosity lacing her words.

The airbender shook his tattooed head while his gaze became downcast, "No I didn't."

Katara thought it was odd that Aang hadn't seen anything. If anyone was going to witness a spirit, it was likely the Avatar. Especially considering he was the bridge between this world and the spirit world. Though she would never wish for anyone to have met the terrifying beast, she secretly hoped that Aang could have encountered it in order to have found out what it did to coax her into her deep slumber. Spirit or no spirit, she knew that the comet was fast approaching and she shouldn't have been sleeping the days away while her friends wasted time watching over her in their worry.

Suddenly Katara's thoughts were interrupted when Aang engulfed her in a tight hug that made her cheeks take on a rosy hue. "Are you okay though? Do you feel alright?" he asked, stumbling over his words as he pulled her closer.

Katara slowly sighed, ignoring her blush and settling into his comforting embrace. As she buried her face into his shoulder, she felt the painful regret of what her actions likely did to the airbender. Katara hated to imagine how he must have felt watching over her practically lifeless form, wondering if she would every wake up. If there positions had been switched, she would have been consumed with worry and unable to process anything other than changes in his condition. Aang being struck by lightening already amounted to one of the scariest experiences she had ever had during her youth.

"Don't worry I feel fine," Katara admitted. However the fact that she felt fine was strange to Katara, especially since something very powerful must have happened to knock her out for so long. Other than a general feeling of weakness from a lack of food, everything seemed okay.

"Katara!" She heard a yell from the doorway. By the time she looked up, another set of arms had surrounded both her and Aang, squeezing the air out of the pair's lungs. Without needing to see who it was, she barely managed to say "Can't…breathe..Sokka!"

"Oops! Sorry sis!" Sokka exclaimed before letting them go. The moment they were released, the two began to deeply inhale air in order to calm their burning lungs. Despite Katara's disoriented state, she noticed how Sokka appeared extremely happy as he cherished the sight of her awake form. She also discovered dark circles that had developed under her brother's eyes, likely due to a lack of sleep. _This is my fault_ she shamefully realized.

"From now on, you're never going into the wild again! Boomerang and I will make sure of that," Sokka proclaimed as he tapped his prized weapon fondly.

Katara rolled her eyes before leaning back on her arms. "I'm sure that'll do the job," she sarcastically replied.

"Hey! Don't doubt us, we took down Combustion Man, remember?"

Katara smirked. "The more I hear that story, the more I'm starting to think that it was a lucky shot," she replied.

Sokka looked horrified by her statement as he hugged his Boomerang closer. "Don't listen to her Boomerang, she just doesn't understand that the only way to fight isn't just with magic water," the Water Tribe boy explained as he sent an irritated look at his sister.

"Sokka for the last time, it's called _waterbending_," Katara grumpily said as if the phrase had become her mantra.

Suddenly, Suki's form appeared in the doorway while she held a strange bag away from her face as her unoccupied hand pinched her nose. "Sokka are we going to get this over with or- Katara! You're awake!" the Kyoshi warrior exclaimed in a nasally voice caused by her pinched nose.

Katara smiled at the sight and strange sound of the older girl. "Yeah, no thanks to a painful wake up call," she said as she shot a glare at Toph.

"Just doing my job," Toph announced with a gleeful smile.

Katara deeply frowned before her eyes were drawn to the mysterious bag that Suki was uncomfortably carrying. She judged by the Kyoshi Warrior's awkward position and slight grimace that whatever was in that bag, clearly had a terrible odor. Katara was somewhat grateful that Suki, and whatever it was she was carrying, decided to remain far away from everyone else. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Katara proceeded to ask, "What's in that bag?"

Suki's eyes widened as she began to nervously laugh. "Oh this? It's nothing really it's-"

"It's a bag of Sokka's socks," Toph said getting right to the point. "I told you, they were gonna use it to-"

"Do nothing since we don't need them anymore! Well at least for you that is," Sokka said while placing a hand over the earthbender's mouth, preventing her from saying another word.

Katara raised a curious eyebrow at her brother. "Why? Who else has gained the horrible honor of smelling your nasty socks?" the waterbender inquired.

At the sound her question, and the lack of immediate responses, Toph decided to take matters into her own hands. Without a second thought she stomped her foot harshly onto the polished wood floor, calling upon the earth buried deep underneath the first floor. Not a moment later, the beach house shook before rock quickly shot through the second story floor, splintering the wood and catching Sokka's foot before throwing him off the earthbender. "YAH!" The Water Tribe boy yelled in surprised as he flew to the floor and landed with a loud bang.

Toph dusted off her hands while smiling to herself. "Those would be for Prince Hothead."

"Aang you told me he was fine!" Katara exclaimed while turning to look at the airbender in his growing chagrin. "Is he still asleep then?" she pressed.

Katara knew that they had both fainted due to Aang's story, however it was wrong of her to have assumed that they both escaped the strange sleeping spell. The thought of the rambunctious firebender being trapped in a deep sleep seemed very odd to Katara. Zuko was by far the earliest riser Team Avatar had encountered, always awakening at the crack of dawn. As everyone shuffled out of their rooms in the morning, they could always count on an energized Zuko to place a warm cup of tea in their hands.

"Yeah…he's still out," Aang slowly admitted.

Katara crossed her tanned arms. "Well have you tried to wake him up?"

"Trust me we tried everything, even Toph slapping him a couple times, but he just won't wake up," Aang gestured towards an angry Sokka picking himself off the floor, "that's why we're going to try using his socks now."

Katara knew more than anyone the powerful stench of her brother's socks. If there was one thing in the world that could wake anyone up, it sure was Sokka's dirty laundry. _Sorry Zuko but we need answers, and the war can't wait for your naps_ Katara thought as she looked at the room's occupants with determined eyes.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's wake his royal highness up," she finally said.

* * *

><p>"Okay guys I definitely don't remember that bruise on his unscarred cheek," Katara said as she analyzed the now colorful face of the Fire Prince. Between the scar, poorly wrapped cut, and mysterious bruise, Zuko's usually alabaster face (excluding the scar) was marred to point that it was hard to tell whether it was even him underneath the injuries. For all she knew her brother could have picked up the wrong cranky firebender. <em>I guess I can just heal him later<em> Katara calmly thought.

"But seriously guys, did you find him with that bruise?" Katara asked while pointing it out.

Sokka nervously looked at his sister, "Well…."

_(Flashback)_

"_Man! Zuko's heavier then he looks, right Aang?" Sokka asked the Avatar._

_The younger boy stumbled a little bit before heaving a strained, "Yup," and readjusting his hold on Zuko's legs._

_Sokka looked up the remaining stairs before returning his gaze to the unconscious firebender in his arms. "Come on Aang, we only have a little farther to go," he happily announced. By the time the two boys had stumbled up the last few steps, they were sweating profusely and breathing heavily as they continued to support the firebender's weight. _

"_This was so much easier with Katara! I was the only one carrying her and she still weighed less than this piece of work," Sokka said before resuming his panting. "I mean what do you think Zukos like to eat?" Sokka asked Aang as they began to walk down the hall towards the firebender's room._

"_Hmm I don't know Sokka," the Avatar replied._

"_I'll tell you one thing, he's definitely not a veg- MOMO!" Sokka screamed as he tripped over the flying lemur. In his shock, Sokka was just about able to catch himself, but in the process he dropped Zuko's torso causing the unbalance in weight to make Aang likewise drop his feet. Zuko hit the hardwood with a bang that had both boys wincing._

"_Oh no! I might have just killed your firebending teacher!" Sokka practically screamed at he stared in horror at the Fire Prince on the floor, surprisingly still out cold. "You don't think he's dead, do you?!"_

_Aang quickly knelt next to Zuko's unconscious form while checking for a pulse. After a few moments the Avatar sighed in relief as he felt a faint beating emanating from the firebender's wrist. "Nope, looks like he's fine, hopefully he'll have no lasting injuries when he wakes up," the Avatar cheerfully said._

_(End Flashback)_

"…You could say that," Sokka finished.

Katara raised an eyebrow at her brother but decided not to push it. "Alright Sokka, bring out your nasty sock," she said before placing a clothe over the bottom half of her face. Everyone else in the room did likewise as Sokka dug around in his bag before drawing out a particularly filthy looking one.

Reaching Zuko's bedside, Sokka paused to look at his sister who stood at the opposite end. "Do you think this is a good idea? I mean, he's probably going to kill me and-"

"Hurry up!" everyone in the room simultaneously shouted.

"Okay! Okay! Just remember how my beautiful face looks before it ends up worse than Zuko's," Sokka frantically said before laying the sock right across Zuko's regal noise.

The whole room held their breath as they waited for any response from the unconscious Fire Prince. After a few moments of Team Avatar anxiously staring at the sock strewn across the Prince's face, Zuko suddenly began to stir in his sleep; the sock was clearly working its magic. His eyebrows furrowed as his closed eyes tightened and relaxed in his comatose state. "Uncle…keep your shoes on," the firebender angrily mumbled. After a few more minutes of waiting, Zuko's golden eyes finally shot open in horror.

"Get this thing off of me!" he practically screamed while violently shaking his shaggy head in order to rid his face of Sokka's sock. Once it fell off of Zuko's face and onto the silk linens, he proceeded to covering his noise and bravely holding up the article. "Who's terrible idea was this!" he barked.

"Great it worked!" Sokka exclaimed, ignoring the intense glare Zuko was now sending him. "What a pure stroke of genius-Ah!"

Zuko roughly grabbed Sokka by the collar, cutting off the Water Tribe boy. "What's the meaning of this!" he questioned. As if suddenly realizing something, the firebender's infuriated eyes clouded with confusion as he finally realized where he was. "How in Agni's name did I get here!" he demanded.

After everyone was finally able to peel Sokka away from Zuko's enraged grasp, Aang provided a straightforward retelling of the story of Team Avatar's recovery mission. Once Zuko was finally updated and had slightly calmed down, he began his end of the tale. However unlike Katara, he decided to leave out their one sided brawl for the time being.

He felt that it was best for the both of them if they avoided the uncomfortable conversation all together for now. Though Zuko was learning to face his problems and inner turmoil head on, he didn't want to accuse her of harming him in front of her friends and cause her dislike of him to increase. The Fire Prince wasn't even sure if Katara remembered what had transpired while she was under the spell. Therefore, he held onto the faint hope that if he never brought it up; it would be like the horrible incident hadn't occurred. _Maybe I still have a shot at patching things up with Katara_ Zuko thought.

"Wait so this thing spared us, but decided it wanted to have _fun_?" Katara asked incredulously after Zuko finished his story.

"Yeah, but I have no idea what it was talking about," the firebender replied. The true meaning of the spirit's words was completely lost to Zuko during his encounter. He could understand the simplicity of ending them on the spot, yet the implication of playing seemed strange considering Zuko failed to see how a spirit confined to a jungle could now meddle with him and Katara.

Katara crossed her arms before looking up at Zuko. "Maybe it was joking? Maybe being asleep for two days counted as his _fun_?" she tried to reason.

"Or maybe-" Sokka's eyes became paranoid as he gripped his sister's shoulders, "-it's only a matter of time before you become monkeys yourself! Your coma was probably the beginning of your metamorphosis!" Sokka grabbed Katara's arm before closely inspecting it. "I think Katara is getting hairier!"

Katara quickly pulled her hand out of her brother's grasp. "I am not turning into a monkey Sokka!" she angrily replied. She knew her brother could be silly, however he had crossed the line between harmless joking and absolute insanity.

"Hmm Sugar Queen may not become a monkey, but we don't know for sure about Sparky," Toph said, earning a frustrated look from the firebender. "I say we turn him over and you guys inspect him to see if he's growing a tail!"

"No one's turning me over and no one's inspecting me!" Zuko yelled as he clenched his fists. "I'm positive that I do _not_ have a tail!"

"Everybody just calm down!" Aang yelled at the bickering Gaang. "Listen all we can do now is hope that Katara and Zuko have been through the worst of whatever the spirit had planned," the Avatar said before sighing and dragging his hand down the length of his face. "Hopefully tomorrow everything will be back to normal and we can go back to planning for the comet, alright?"

"Fine" everybody agreed, with the addition of a loud noise being admitted from Sokka. In response everyone turned to look at him as he bashfully rubbed his stomach.

"So who's hungry?" he began, "Because I know I am!" Sokka cheerfully said as his blue eyes lit up at the prospect of food.

Katara put her hand on her hip, looking at her brother. "And how exactly do we have food now?" she questioned.

"Oh right! Well Sokka was able to get a job while you were asleep," Aang replied as the Water Tribe boy beamed in the background.

"A job? Doing what exactly?"

Sokka clenched one fist as he looked up at the ceiling in his attempt to be dramatic. "Doing the most respectable, most humblest, most-"

"He sells cabbages," Toph interjected.

* * *

><p>Soon after filing downstairs, Katara was shocked to find the house's pantry fully stocked with everything she could have ever needed. What was even more of a surprise was the amount of fresh jerky that sat in stacks upon the shelves. True to Sokka's word, they had all the meat they could ever want. With the multitude of ingredients at her disposal, Katara imagined the interesting dishes she could prepare compared to what they had survived on in the past. After everything Team Avatar had been through, Katara smiled at the idea of having a decent meal for once. <em>But how on earth does a cabbage seller make this kind of money!<em> Katara thought as she continued to inspect the high quality goods.

"Sorry, but not tonight Katara," Suki said as she entered the kitchen. "You've just gotten out of a coma, I think I can manage dinner."

Katara tore her eyes away from the supplies to watch Suki approach her. "Are you sure?" she asked stepping out of the large pantry room. Sleeping for three days emphasized why she needed to help more than ever in order to make up for the time she wasted. Katara had always been the mother of the team, so for her to resume cooking was like resuming to teach Aang waterbending or fighting the Fire Nation. It was just the natural order of how things had worked since she left the South Pole. Also the Water Tribe girl welcomed any form of normality to shake off the memory of the spirit. "Cooking is the least I can do for my carelessness at the shrine and then sleeping for three days," she admitted.

Suki warmly smiled and shook her head before placing a gentle hand on Katara's shoulder. "It's fine. I've managed while you've been out, and look-" The older girl pointed at the window that provided a view of the dining room, "-they're all alive".

Katara laughed, but soon her smiled faded as she swayed on her feet. Her energy suddenly waned causing the strength in her legs to dissipate and her vision to swirl. All Katara could think about was how much better she would feel when her body met the cool marble floor.

Realizing Katara's dizzy spell, Suki firmly grabbed the younger girl by both shoulders to prevent her from falling. "Hey are you alright!" Suki worriedly asked. As Katara looked up at the older girl through glossy eyes, Suki took note of how the younger girl's cheeks had become quite flushed as sweat dripped down her face.

"I don't know," Katara slowly said while weakly reaching for the counter to steady herself. Up until now, Katara had felt perfectly fine despite the hunger of not eating for a few days. She in no way felt ill, yet out of nowhere a feverish heat consumed and weakened her to the point where she couldn't support herself. The heat seemed to burn deep within her chest making it unbearable to breathe.

Worried about her condition, Suki placed her hand on the waterbender's clammy forehead, but quickly retracted it when an abnormally warm temperature met her palm. "Katara you're burning up!" she told Katara, squarely looking her in the eye. "Please, go relax a little bit, you're probably getting sick from not eating."

Once the heat momentarily subsided and Katara felt some of her strength return, she gently pushed Suki's arms away as she straightened. "Okay fine," she breathed, "But I hope you take complete advantage of everything we have now," she said trying to muster a smile in her condition. "What I don't get it how Sokka managed to afford this all."

Suki shrugged and lightly smiled at Katara, keeping her eyes trained on the girl should she loose her footing once more. "If I knew I would have told you by now. Anyway, please go sit down with everyone, I have things under control," the Kyoshi warrior said while directing the waterbender towards the kitchen exit.

"Relax? I've been doing that for days!" Katara replied despite knowing that it was unwise to argue.

Suki sighed and shook her head at the younger girl before grabbing the teapot off of the counter. "Alright well bring this tea out since you don't want to _relax_," she said handing Katara the pot. The Kyoshi Warrior knew that if Katara didn't feel useful, she would likely find something else to do in order sate her motherly tendencies. At least if it she was serving tea, Suki was sure that she wasn't overexerting herself.

"Fine," Katara simply said before retrieving the teapot from the older girl. However as she turned to walk out of the kitchen, Suki placed a comforting hand on her shoulder to still her. "Just please be careful Katara, and if you still don't feel well, let us know," she said.

Katara sighed. "I'm fine now, whatever I just experienced is gone so-" she looked down at the porcelain teapot, "-I'll just bring this out." With those final words she stepped out into the hallway that lead to the dining room.

As she padded across the wooden floor, Katara became acutely aware that she couldn't sense the natural presence of the tea as it swished around in the teapot. The most she could register was the vibrations of the pot as the tea slapped against its hollow interior. Normally she could sense a stream from a mile away as the water always called to her and beckoned to be bent. Being unable to feel something as close as the tea made her curious as to whether the strange illness was messing with her chi. Now that Katara considered her waterbending, she realized that she couldn't even feel the distracting strength of the nearby waves as they crashed onto the shore. Even the moon that now took its place in the dark sky had no effect on her whatsoever. _This will all pass_ she repeated to herself desperately as she continued to make her way through the dimly lit beach house. _You're just a little under the weather, you're abilities are just a little weak right now._

"Hey there's my favorite sister!" Sokka called when Katara finally entered the dining room. From where she stood Katara looked down the length of the table to see her friends sitting comfortably while causally chatting with each other. Even Zuko seemed a little livelier as he discussed firebending techniques with Aang.

Katara carefully placed the teapot on the mahogany table. "Sokka I'm your only sister," she replied.

"Well yes but-woah Katara are you alright?" Sokka asked noticing her once more glistening face.

Her eyes widened as she frantically swiped her hand across her brow only to find her hand coated in sweat. _What is going on!_ Her mind screamed as the warmth in her chest became prevalent once more. Before her legs gave out again, Katara quickly sank into an empty chair. "It's just a little hot in here," she firmly said trying to fan herself with her hand.

"Do you want me to give you a little breeze," Aang offered tearing himself away from his former conversation.

Katara shook her head. "No no, it's fine. I'll just serve some tea now," she stated hoping to take her mind off of how awful she felt. Once she reached over to take the top off of the tea, she settled back into her chair deciding to just bend it into everyone's cups from where she was seated. She slowly raised her slim hands to bend the tea; only when she turned her palms upwards, not even a splash was heard from within the pot. Hoping not to draw attention to herself, she didn't panic as she continued her waterbending forms, yet still nothing happened. Her hands became frantic as she repeated her forms in her growing frustration, realizing that her worry was beginning to show on her face. By now the infernal heat that was plaguing her seemed to increase with her self directed rage for failing to perform the simplest of waterbending techniques.

"Katara are you alright?" Zuko asked from his seat, warily eyeing the girl.

"I'm fine Zuko! Why does everyone keep asking that?" she yelled, the heat painfully burning within her. _This isn't me_ Katara desperately thought, she knew she didn't lose her patience, at least this easily. Yet between the frustration of her bending and the strange illness that was tormenting her, it was difficult to consider anyone else's feelings. Suddenly all her thoughts were being eaten up by the heat that seemed to be slowly consuming her.

Aang looked worriedly at Katara's now drenched face. "Katara calm down, we're just worried!"

"Yeah sis, are you okay?" Sokka asked.

"Sugar Queen you're heart is racing," Toph said.

"Katara? Can you even hear me?"

"Katara?"

"Katara!"

"Talk to us!"

"Enough!" She screamed.

Then the impossible happened.

Suddenly flames erupted within the room and engulfed the wooden table like it was firewood. However the flames did not originate from Zuko or Aang, they shot directly from Katara's small palms. With each haggard breath she took, the flames grew in intensity as she fearfully backed away from the burning table. Tearing her eyes away from the raging fire, they became unnaturally large as she looked down at her hands. They were engulfed in bright orange flames that's heat was tangible, yet did nothing to burn her hands. She dropped to the floor and fearfully continued to stare at her palms as they produced smoldering flames.

"Ah! Zuko what the heck!" Sokka yelled as he pulled Toph away, unable to see his sister over the flame's walls. "Couldn't you have practiced your firebending on something other than the dining room table!"

"You think I did this!" Zuko shot back looking at the Water Tribe boy. "You think I'm this careless!"

"Zuko just stop your fire!" Aang yelled realizing that he had not yet learned how to quell them.

Zuko stared incredulously at the Avatar. "I told you! I didn't do this!" he shouted pointing at the bright flames.

"Just fix this!" Aang and Sokka yelled.

Zuko put aside his frustration and looked at the mess in front of him with a scowl. He took a deep breath and faced his palms towards the flames as he concentrated; yet the harder he tried, the less results he received. "It's no use! I can't control the fire!" Zuko yelled over the roar of the growing flames.

"Try harder!" Sokka shouted back.

As Zuko tried once more to diminish the flames, his golden eyes filled with fear as he realized that nothing he did could tame the fire. Even the heat that the flames emitted was unbearably hot to Zuko. Firebenders had a great immunity against heat that allowed them to handle and defend against fire without becoming fearful of the element they commanded. Yet as the flames tried to lick at Zuko's arms, he found himself backing away as his confidence in handling them dissipated.

"Come on, don't tell me you lost your stuff again!" Toph shouted while safely tucked away in a corner from the unseen flames.

He grit his teeth and growled before finally turning to Aang. "I can't do anything!" he angrily admitted.

"Okay everybody duck!" Aang said. Sokka pushed down Toph's head and crouched down next to her, while Zuko quickly dropped to the floor. Soon the room howled with the sound of airbending as the wind harshly whipped at everyone.

As the wind finally began to disappear, everyone hesitantly raised their heads to see the once smoldering table as a now charred structure, barely standing. Several paintings that had flown off the wall were now scattered about as if a tornado had swept through the room. However the most noticeable difference was the hysterical sobs that could now be heard. Everyone exchanged curious glances before looking in the direction that the cries originated from. As Team Avatar turned to see who was crying, they were astounded when they found Katara sitting on the floor.

Tears ran down her face.

Flames continued to blaze in her palms.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Well this turned out to be a longer chapter than I expected! Anyway, it looks like Katara finally realized she's a firebender now! I thought it would be interesting if her firebending came about similar to how Zuko went through his metamorphosis in Ba Sing Se. I always thought that fevers seemed like an interesting way to represent monumental changes within firebenders._

_Remember to keep reviewing! I would love to here your opinions and suggestions for my story! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!_


	4. Chapter 4

_I do not own ATLA!_

* * *

><p>"Katara your hands!" Sokka shouted as he pointed at his sister in horror. "They're on fire!" he said quickly, eyeing the bright element. Wishing to aid his sister, Sokka began to make his way towards Katara's distressed form. Yet, with each tentative step he took in her direction, she tried to slide out of his reach.<p>

"Stay back" she pitifully cried while tears continued to rush down her blushed cheeks. "I'll only hurt you," she said returning her gaze to her hands once more.

Ever since she lost control of her emotions, the heat that had been gradually building up inside of her somehow escaped when the fire materialized in her palms. Like she noted earlier, the flames did nothing to burn her hands, but that did not repress its destruction of everything else. If she was mysteriously able to set the table ablaze, Katara did not like to think of what else she could effortlessly put in a similar state. Though the Water Tribe girl was scared of harming another, she was more afraid of herself than anything else. What was happening was foreign to a girl that had spent her life controlling the opposing element of water. Despite often combating fire, Katara greatly feared it now that she could do nothing to subdue it. She feared what killed her mother. She feared what she could not control. Never before had she been so unsure of herself and was greatly surprised when she felt hot tears drip down her chin.

Sokka looked confusedly at his sister while still trying to reach her. "Sis you're the one getting hurt, let us help you!" he turned to look behind him, "Aang, Zuko, you have to do something!" he said while looking at the two shocked boys.

Zuko took note of Katara's smoldering hands and immediately felt fear for the third degree burns she would soon receive if they didn't douse the flames. He knew better than anyone the immense pain that came with fire's deadly touch and how it left nothing but painful scars. To see her delicate hands encased in his element was a horrific sight that reminded him of just how dangerous firebending could truly be, only he was still unsure of who's firebending started the whole mess in the first place.

"I told you, I can't firebend right now," Zuko admitted in his frustration. "Aang, you're going to have to airbend," he said, turning to the younger boy.

Aang swallowed and stiffly nodded before slowly moving towards his sobbing friend. "Katara, I'm going to get rid of the flames with my airbending, just hang in there!" he quickly explained while carefully stepping closer.

Zuko noted how sweat slid down Aang's face as he tried to approach his friend. If he was worried about Katara, Zuko couldn't imagine how the younger boy was faring. The Fire Prince recalled how Aang once told him that he quit firebending when he burned Katara. For Aang to see fire's dangerous effects once again harming his closest friend, Zuko feared that this event would become a hindrance to his mastery of firebending.

Katara closed her moistened eyes and shook her head as the Avatar tried to move closer. "It won't do anything," she slowly said "Just please Aang, stay back."

"Katara I don't understand…"

"I just don't want you to get hurt," Katara pitifully admitted while looking up at the Avatar through watery blue eyes. "This is all my fault!" she suddenly cried.

Aang continued to approach Katara despite her protests. "It can't be! It's not like you purposefully got your hands caught on fire," Without another word he lifted his fingers towards the flames and released a concentrated amount of airbending right at them. Katara bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut as the harsh wind blew her dark locks haphazardly around her round face. Fire and air fought for dominance before finally the flames momentarily receded.

For a split second Katara's hands appeared, reveling healthy looking skin that was unscathed by the fire. However, despite the small victory, the flames quickly returned once more in a growing intensity. Aang stared wide-eyed at this startling discovery having witnessed Katara's unharmed palms. Cracking her eyes open and noticing that her hands had lit up again, Katara shrieked and scrambled to her feet before fleeing the room entirely. Her hair whipped behind her and was the last thing the Gaang saw before she completely disappeared around the corner in her haste.

Everyone immediately made a move to chase after her, but Aang swiftly blocked the exit. "Guys, there's something you need to know," he stated, putting his hand up to halt a riled up Sokka.

"Well make it quick because my baby sister may not have her hands left if we don't help her!" Sokka worriedly exclaimed.

"That's the thing, Katara's hands aren't even burning," Aang explained in disbelief "Also when I blew the flames away, they just came back like nothing happened!"

"But that's impossible!" Sokka said as his brow furrowed.

Toph walked over to everyone. "For that to be happening she would need to be a-"

"Firebender," Zuko finished.

At his words everyone turned to look at the Fire Prince who had a serious look on his face. He knew now what was impossible to see before. Neither Aang nor Zuko started the fire because they weren't firebending, Katara was. The moment Aang said that Katara's hands were perfectly fine he knew there was only one possible explanation: she had become a firebender. _My fun_ rang in Zuko's ears as he realized what the spirit had meant at the time. Instead of killing them, he decided to curse Katara by exchanging her waterbending for an element that she lacked the understanding to control. _That's why she was having so much trouble trying to waterbend earlier_ he realized.

"This is the spirit's fault," he announced, taking in everyone's shocked expressions. "He decided to turn Katara into a firebender for _fun_," Zuko explained distastefully.

Sokka stared at Zuko with a horrified look. "My sister can't be a firebender! Magic water I can handle, but not magic fire!" the Water Tribe boy began to pace about, "From now on I can't ever upset her again! Heck, I probably can't even ask her to lift a finger for me!"

"This is hard to believe. I knew that the spirits had the abilities to grant bending, I just never knew that they could completely change it," Aang told Zuko, ignoring Sokka's dramatic episode in the background. "But what about you Zuko, do you think the spirit messed with your bending too?"

Zuko nervously swallowed as he thought back to how he had been unable to firebend earlier. "I'm not sure really sure…"

The prince was worried to outright admit that he may have lost his firebending not because it was his most familiar weapon, but because of how shameful it would be to the Avatar and his cause if he lost it once again. In addition to that, if what Aang wondered was true regarding his bending, Zuko knew things were going to get far worse. Not only would he be useless as a firebending instructor, but as a person who couldn't fight back. Overall he doubted he could master any other element before Sozin's Comet. Other bending forms relied on the control and manipulation of surroundings, not the internal drive that stemmed from oneself. Zuko's drive is what fueled his goals, his dedication, and his willingness to succeed. If he lost his firebending to an element that relied less on these aspects, he was uncertain as to whether he would be able to bend at all.

Aang looked questionably at Zuko. "Well if-"

"Ahem" Toph said cutting off Aang.

Everyone turned to look the earthbender as she crossed her arms. "In case anyone has noticed, Katara is still off somewhere freaked out and probably about to burn the house down, _so _maybe someone should, I don't know, help her!" Toph loudly demanded. "Considering Twinkletoes and Sparky are the only ones here who know anything about firebending, one of you should find her."

Aang turned to look at Zuko. "You're the firebending teacher, not me. I wouldn't know where to start."

"But you're her friend! Do you honestly think I can get through to her?" Zuko skeptically replied. The Fire Prince was well aware that getting the hysterical Water Tribe girl to listen to him right now would be as difficult as moving Appa with one arm.

"I know you guys have a complicated relationship, but you have to try Zuko, for Katara's sake," the Avatar pleaded. "I just don't want her getting hurt," he ended while sadly looking in the direction she fled.

"And so that we live to face the Fire Lord," Sokka quickly added. Everyone turned to look at him with disappointed faces. "What? Katara burned down the table that she scrubbed for hours when we first got here, who knows what other crazy things she might do," Sokka said with a shrug.

"Come on Sparky, Sugar Queen needs her Sifu Hotman," Toph finally said, "And Sokka may have a point".

"Thank you!" he yelled while flinging his arms outward.

_They do have a point_ Zuko thought. The Fire Prince had never been much of a teacher until he started training Aang. Even during his lessons he was still learning to understand the patience that came with instruction and how to transform firebending forms into a teachable example. Instructing the Avatar was enough work within itself, so he disliked imagining how much harder it would be to teach a waterbender to bend an element she seemed to not want anything to do with. Still, Zuko knew that for both her own safety and the safety of the Gaang, she needed to learn how to control her fire. Firebending was highly dangerous in the hands of the inexperienced.

Zuko sighed deeply. "Okay fine, just stop calling me Sifu Hotman."

"Whatever you say Sifu Hot- I mean Zuko!" Aang happily replied.

The prince shot the airbender a stern look before sighing once more and sweeping past everyone in the direction that Katara ran. As Zuko continued down the hall he passed Suki as she carried a tray full of food.

"Hey where's Zuko off to in such a hurry?" the Kyoshi Warrior asked as she entered the dining room, keeping her eyes glued on the steamy food she balanced. When Suki finally looked up, she nearly dropped what she was carrying. "What on earth happened in here!" she exclaimed as she noticed the room's artwork scattered about the floor and the dining room table a charred mess.

"Katara threw a tantrum?" Sokka offered.

* * *

><p><em>How can this be happening to me?<em> Katara thought as she sat on the steps leading into the courtyard. Being a safe distance away from everyone, she had mildly calmed down and let the calm breeze dry her tears. Despite the gentle breeze that tickled her face, it did not hide the fact that the air was very damp and carried the strong scent of past rain. Around her lay numerous puddles that mirrored the starry sky and decorated the otherwise plain courtyard. Meanwhile the badger-frogs croaked far off into the night, pleased with the moist environment.

Now that her sobs had ceased, Katara felt a dull ache as she pitifully continued to stare at the fire in her hands. The full moon cast its milky glow upon the world and coated everything in its ivory light, but was abruptly obstructed when it encountered her. _Not even the moon recognizes me_ _anymore_ Katara painfully thought as she noticed how the flame's light offset the moon's radiating glow. The bright fire made its presence know in the calm night and seemed to throw off the peaceful atmosphere she sought. With nothing but her lonesome self, the flames resting in her palms, and the moon presiding overhead, Katara finally had the opportunity to truly contemplate what was happening to her.

By now Katara had realized that her hands had not actually caught on fire, but were in fact producing it. When Aang had tried to douse the flames in order to aid her situation, Katara's fingers became ablaze once again when they theoretically shouldn't have. There was a mysterious fuel within the former waterbender that was creating the menace that plagued her. _Is this magic?_ She wondered. _Why am I immune to fire now? _For Katara's latter thought to be true, that would mean exploring an impossible truth that she wished to avoid. Yet she tried to repress the thoughts that threatened to scream what she dreaded to recognize.

_Waterbenders don't create fire, waterbenders get burnt by fire, waterbenders don't feel a strange pulsating heat inside of them…unless they're actually… no stop it! _Katara internally voiced as her mind fought with itself.

"There you are," a male voice stiffly said.

Katara whipped her head up the sudden statement and noticed that Zuko now stood before her; coated in the glow of the moon she sought for herself. He had a slightly concerned look in his golden eyes that at the same time spoke mostly of uncertainty. Even his posture was awkward as he stood before Katara with his hands clasp together. She was greatly surprised that out of all her friends, the one person she was the least close to sought her out, again. The Water Tribe girl had a growing suspicion that everyone put the poor prince up to it based on his uncomfortable demeanor.

Katara in turn just looked away and allowed her thick hair, which had fallen out of its topknot, to fall in curtains around her face, slightly hiding it. "Just leave me alone Zuko. I appreciate you finding me, but there's nothing you can do here," she softly said.

Zuko shook his shaggy head and looked closely at Katara, trying to put aside his initial awkwardness. "You and I both know that I'm probably the only one who _can_ do something."

Katara looked up at Zuko with desperate, red-rimmed eyes before the flames in her hands momentarily intensified, claiming her attention once again.

Zuko sighed and wondered how best to break the news to Katara as he eyed the dancing flames in her hands. He had never been very good at handling girl's emotions, let alone the one that sat before him. The only woman that he was currently closest to was Mai and she was a polar opposite of Katara's emotional persona. Being gentle with people was something he was learning to do as he gradually let go of his past rage. Yet, he felt it was justifiable if he was straightforward. The sooner Katara understood the situation, the sooner he could teach her how to control her new abilities.

Zuko took a deep breath. "This-" he said gesturing to her hands, "-is a curse that the spirit created." Zuko tried to read Katara's face, but it was completely turned towards the pavement. The words continued to tumble out of his mouth, "You're no longer a waterbender…you're a-"

"Just stop, please don't finish that sentence," Katara breathed as a single tear sparkled in the moonlight and slid down her saddened face. She knew Zuko was about to reveal the word that she dreaded to hear, a word that would change who she was forever.

"If I'm not a waterbender anymore, then what good am I to Aang and his mission? How can I help win this war when I've lost a part of who I am?" Katara weakly asked while looking into Zuko's golden eyes. Then she shamefully turned away.

_Nice going, she was already upset so you just had to go and make her cry _Zuko's mind taunted. The prince was at a loss for words as he had no idea how to comfort Katara as she painfully realized what a loss in her waterbending entailed. He cursed himself for the years of insensitivity he had practiced, but knew he had to at least try to stop her tears. It was emotions like fear and sadness that were fueling her firebending in the first place.

"Hey…don't cry…" he hesitantly said as he stepped over a puddle that separated them. Then, after a couple painful seconds of indecision, he outstretched his hand towards Katara in order to place it on her shoulder.

As soon as his pale palm made contact with her bare shoulder, she jerked away in surprise. Another tear leaked down her cheek as she now looked up at him. "It won't be long before I end up hurting someone," Katara nearly whispered.

"That's not true," Zuko firmly said, finally taking charge of the conversation. The former prince knew that Katara was many things, however being the type of person who hurt the ones she loved was not one of them. "I know it's not true because you care too much to do something like that," Zuko looked determinedly at Katara, "That's why you're going to let me help you get those flames to go away."

"Can you really do that?" she innocently replied as her tears momentarily ceased, hope evident in every word.

Zuko nodded. "You could say I have a little expertise in that area," he said with a small grin.

The Fire Prince had always felt like a stranger to Katara, whether it be an enemy that pursued her, or a firebending teacher that she exchanged few words with. For him to readily offer his help again was something she deeply appreciated, yet Katara disliked appearing vulnerable in his eyes. There was something about Zuko that instilled in her the drive to prove how powerful she truly was. Even when they pursued the Southern Raiders Katara went above and beyond her bending abilities by creating towering waves, maintain a large air bubble around Appa, and finally blood bending. Unlike everyone else, Zuko was careful, analytical, calculating and quick to chastise when something went wrong. Though he did not dare to purposefully aggravate Katara, strangely this side of him compelled her to demonstrate how she had grown as a warrior since first meeting him in the South Pole. However despite her pride, Katara knew that she unfortunately needed to rely on the young man in front of her.

Returning her thoughts to the present, Katara watched as Zuko knelt in front of her so their gazes were level, keeping a careful distance between them to respect her need for space. "When I was a boy I used to have the same problem as you…Azula used to always tease and belittle me. This gave me a lot of rage even as a kid and sometimes this rage, or in your case heightened emotions, would make me constantly firebend." Katara visibly flinched at the word _firebend_ knowing that Zuko was verbally giving a name to what she had been doing for the last thirty minutes.

"How would you stop?" Katara inquired, her attention fixed on the boy in front of her.

Zuko thought back to the small lessons his mother taught him growing up within the palace. Though his father insisted that only his handpicked firebending teachers instruct Zuko, his mother was always readily offering guidance. Such guidance aided him in handling his emotions and the firebending that sometimes arose from it. If it wasn't for her help in his early years, Zuko knew he would be stuck in the same boat as Katara. Being scarred, banished, and now disowned by his own father was enough for Zuko to instantly burn out his chi in the form of useless firebending.

"Close your eyes," he suddenly commanded.

Katara raised a curious eyebrow at the Fire Prince. "Close my eyes? What's that supposed to do exactly?"

"Just do it"

"I still don't understand how that's going to help" she quickly replied.

Zuko sighed. "Do you want my help or not?"

"Yeah"

"Then close your eyes for Agni's sake!" Zuko once again commanded, his irritation escalating. _I knew this wouldn't be easy…_

"Okay okay, I'm doing it. Just calm down," Katara slammed her lids shut, turning her world into one of complete darkness. "Now what? Do I open my eyes and the flames are gone?" she sarcastically asked, some of her former boldness returning.

Zuko snorted at Katara's brash assumption. "No, not yet, first you need to relax. You can start doing this by controlling your breathing. Take deep breaths, in through your nose, out through your mouth."

Katara obeyed and controlled her breathing. With each inhale she could have sworn the heat in her hands mitigated before increasing once again with her exhales.

"Now imagine a peaceful scenario in your head, this will calm your mind and further pace your breathing." Zuko spoke; imitating the same words his mother once spoke to him.

Katara's face frowned. "Peaceful scenario?"

"Yeah, you know, like fixing your hair or whatever it is girls like to do," Zuko offered. He had never been very close to Azula, but he did notice when he returned to the Fire Nation that his sister had picked up the habit of having her hair washed and combed by the servants nearly twice a day. Katara didn't have servants, but he trusted that the concept was the same.

Katara snorted. "Taming my hair is far from peaceful," she dryly replied. "It's more of a war really."

"Are you kidding? I thought girls liked doing stuff like that," Zuko said, mentally slapping himself again at his realization that he knew nothing about girls. He should have clearly remembered this after visiting the beach with Mai.

"Next time I wake up, I'll let you have a go at brushing my hair and see how peaceful it really is," she responded, ignoring the fact that she just invited the Prince of the Fire Nation to comb her hair.

Zuko was pleased that he was somehow able to coax her into acting like her former self, however the comment caused him to slightly flush at the thought of detangling her long hair. _Because that's what the world needs to find out, not only did the Prince of the Fire Nation abandon his people for the Avatar's group, but is catering to their every little need _he mused. Zuko was just glad that Katara's eyes were still screwed shut and couldn't see his pink cheeks.

Shaking off the comment, he decided to just sit in silence until Katara hopefully found her "peaceful scenario". Finding his knees tired from bearing his weight, Zuko opted to just sitting crossed-legged on the pavement and resting his chin on his hand. He looked up at Katara as she sat still as a statue with her fire-bearing palms still lying on her lap. Knowing that she would be angry if he caught him observing her, Zuko started to trace the patterns on his clothes in boredom. Eventually he lost interest in his former activity and settled on counting the badger-frog croaks. After another few moments of useless counting, his usual lack of patience started to kick in.

Zuko glanced at Katara again. "Well did you think of something yet?" he urgently inquired.

"Well I can't if you keep interrupting my thoughts."

Zuko was about to snap back at the girl but took a deep breath instead. _Control Zuko, don't forget about control. _If the prince still had firebending, he knew steam would likely be coming out of his nose by now. But no, he had learned to control himself when he taught Aang, surely he could do the same for this girl.

"What if you tried thinking about peaceful memories?" he calmly offered, keeping the frustration out of his voice.

At the notion of a peaceful memory, Katara sat in silence for a few more minutes trying to scour her mind for one. The young woman lightly smiled when she discovered what she sought and felt the warmer climate of the Fire Nation fade away into the cold air of the South Pole. She envisioned an old memory in which she and Sokka were playing in the glittering snow while warmly clad in their parkas. Katara imagined inhaling the freezing, crisp air that burned her lungs, but likewise awakened her. The arctic wind gently tugged at her braid as it blew in from across the icy sea. While they played, she looked up to see her mother in the distance, calmly watching her children. Katara saw herself looking into her mother's beautiful eyes and smiling at her, anticipating the moment when her warm embrace would chase away the endless cold of the day.

_"Look what I made!" the memory Katara happily called to her mother as she presented her snowman._

_Kya walked towards her elated daughter and proudly observed Katara's handiwork. "That's very nice Katara, what are you going to name him?" she asked, pointing at the poorly assembled snowman._

_Memory Katara crinkled her brow as she considered her mothers words. Suddenly her eyes wide eyes brightened and she cheekily grinned at her mother. "I'll name it Sokka!" she finally squealed, "after Sokka!"_

_"Oh no you won't!" the real Sokka exclaimed, glaring angrily at his younger sister._

_Kya crouched down and looked into her son's heated gaze with her own kind one. "You can't be the only Sokka in the world, surely there are others," she calmly explained._

_"Well I've never met another Sokka…" he mumbled. "But I still think Katara shouldn't go around giving away my name," he continued, his anger gradually increasing. "She should at least trade it for meat!" he walked right up to his sister, "Take back what you did!"_

_Katara laughed and looked at her brother. "It's too late now! No meat for poor Sokka!"_

_"That's it! You really did it now!" he called after her as he began to chase her around the icy tundra, leaving their mother to shake her head and smile at her children's silly behavior._

"You really did it," a deeper masculine voice suddenly said, cutting through the memory.

Katara snapped her eyes open and noticed that she no longer felt the chill of the South Pole, but humid air that clung to her skin. Even the boy that sat before her bared no resemblance to those of her frigid home. No, his golden eyes and pale skin claimed ancestry to the country she was currently hiding in.

"You actually did it," Zuko repeated as he stared approvingly at her.

Confused, Katara slowly looked down expecting to find her hands still consumed in fire. Instead, what she discovered was something that caused her eyes to widen in shock. Her hands were back to normal. There were no flames, there was no heat, just wonderful plain palms lazily laying upon her lap.

"They're…normal," she muttered in disbelief. Soon a smile began to creep onto Katara's face. "Thank you Zuko."

He looked into her warms eyes and realized that she offered him genuine gratitude. "No pro- umph!" Zuko's words were cut off when Katara surprised him with an unexpected hug and threw him slightly backwards. However, Katara had forgotten about the numerous puddles and inadvertently threw Zuko right into one with a loud splash.

Then a cracking sound was heard.

Zuko suddenly felt immobile as his bottom became painfully cold and glued to where he was sitting. This caused him to tense in discomfort, puzzled by what just happened. Not even Katara's warm embrace could mitigate the sudden cold that was seeping through his body.

Feeling Zuko stiffen in her arms, Katara quickly pulled away; embarrassed that he rejected her hug. She knew the prince was unused to embraces, but was slightly disappointed that he did not appreciate her form of gratitude. Hugs were something she readily gave out, as it was her way of expressing her caring nature, even towards someone as distant as Zuko. However, she was confused as to why he rejected her now when he readily hugged her after the Southern Raiders. When she fully pulled away to apologize for her brash behavior, she finally got her answer.

"Zuko… you're frozen to the ground!" she exclaimed as she saw ice encasing the lower half of his body.

"What?" He looked down "Oh my Agni!" he yelled as he noticed what Katara pointed out. Crystal clear ice trapped his legs and lower torso, gluing him to the ground. He used his fist to crack the ice, but painfully retracted it when his knuckles met the solid substance. By now his teeth were starting the chatter as chills attacked his body. Without his breath of fire, Zuko's body temperature began to rapidly decrease despite the warm air that surrounded him.

"How did this happen?!" Katara asked as she stared at the ice.

Zuko wrapped his arms around himself. "I…don't…know!" he managed to say despite his shivering.

"Well I didn't do this since I can't waterbend," Katara explained in confusion. "Wait, why aren't you using your firebending to free yourself?" she curiously asked.

"I…can't…firebend…" he managed to say despite wishing not to voice this truth.

"Why? Did you lose your drive again?"

"No... I just can't"

_Then what's preventing him from firebending_? Katara wondered. _Wait a second... if random ice is appearing out of nowhere, and Zuko can't firebend, then..._

Katara's eyes widened as she realized what was really going. She remembered how Zuko explained that the spirit had turned her into a firebender, causing her to lose her waterbending abilities. What if the opposite happened to Zuko? What if Zuko had become a…

"You're a waterbender!" she suddenly cried, pointing at Zuko. "You! A waterbender?" Katara stood up and began to pace about. "That horrible creature that calls himself a spirit took our bending and switched it!" she announced, astounded. "I can't believe it, he actually turned the Prince of the Fire Nation into a waterbender!"

The cold that was consuming Zuko quickly became the least of his worries as he registered Katara's words. He was a waterbender? Out of all the elements that Zuko could have received, he happened to obtain the element that was not only the opposite of fire, but had a vastly different bending style! Though Zuko would not shed tears like Katara had when she learned of her lost bending, he fumed in anger remembering that it was the monkey that did this. The prince seethed when he thought of how the spirit was going to gain his wish of seeing him dead. Without his firebending, he was sure to perish in battle.

"Hey Zuko! Zuko? Zuko!" Katara yelled.

Zuko snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the worried girl in front of him.

"Are you okay? You look really upset," she hesitantly said.

"Upset? Upset! I'm more than upset Katara!" he glared at her, "I've just lost my bending and I'm completely helpless now!"

"But you still have waterbending Zuko, you're not help-"

"Of course I am! You honestly think I can bend water? You've got to be joking!" he shot back.

Katara scowled as she looked at the agitated prince, deeply offended. "So you think I want to bend fire for the rest of my life! It's a destructive element that does more harm than good!" she shouted back in anger.

Zuko narrowed his golden eyes at Katara. "Well at least you can bend this element that you hate so much!"

Katara scoffed. "Do you not see yourself right now, you just froze your own butt to the pavement! But I forgot, that doesn't count as bending," she replied.

"Well it sure doesn't when it backfires!" Zuko returned.

The Fire Prince growled as he helplessly tried to free himself again, twisting and turning in his encasement. He even tried punching the ice again to no avail. Katara meanwhile crossed her arms and watched Zuko struggle with his predicament. _Serves him right for yelling at me_ she thought.

"Ugh!" he finally yelled, giving up. "Katara tell me how to melt the ice," the prince asked, momentarily letting go of his pride.

She narrowed her eyes at Zuko. "Why should I? You clearly don't want to learn how to bend water," she replied sweetly.

Zuko was stunned by her words. "But I helped you!"

"Then you turned around and yelled at me," she smoothly responded.

"Don't act like you didn't yell back!" he spat.

Zuko couldn't believe her hostility. It was like she never forgave him and was giving him the cold shoulder like in the Western Air Temple again. Didn't she realize that he would freeze to death if she didn't help him?

"Have fun melting your own ice," Katara coolly said as she started to walk away from a fuming Zuko.

Realizing her intent to leave him frozen to ground, he started to call after her. "Wait! Where are you going?" he desperately yelled at her back.

"To bed."

"What? You can't just leave me here!"

"Watch me," she replied as she continued to walk.

When Katara finally got to the doorway, she halted and glanced over her shoulder. "Goodnight Zuko" she plainly said before walking inside and slamming the door shut.

Zuko stared blankly at the closed door.

"Katara! he screamed. "Come back!"

It would be another fifteen minutes before Katara finally decided to find her brother and instruct him to free Zuko with his boomerang.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Looks like things got heated between Zuko and Katara again, but at least now we can truly get on with the plot! Unfortunately I start school again soon, so I may be posting less frequently, but as always your reviews help me to write faster :D. I love hearing you opinions and ideas for my story so please don't stop! _

_Special thanks to airichan623 for your kind comments and ideas. I took your ideas to heart and I'll try to incorporate them as best I can__. _

_Happy New Year!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Guess what I will never own? ATLA **

* * *

><p>"Do you think they'll ever come out of their rooms?" Aang asked Sokka as he placed some rice in his bowl. "They've been hiding all morning and I'm really starting to worry," he continued as a frown overtook his usually cheerful visage.<p>

The last the young airbender had seen of Katara was when she found her brother as he was helping him clean up the dining room. Only he and Sokka were present as she strode into the room, very intent on finding them as anger radiated off of her form. Aang and Sokka were both relieved to see find unharmed, but confused as to why she seemed so cross. Her fists were clenched, her lips were a fine line, and her eyes burned like Azula's fire. Not too long ago she was scared and confused, however her demeanor had drastically changed. They instantly voiced their concerns about her well-being and bombarded her with questions, but she ignored all their comments. Katara quickly told them that Zuko needed them in the courtyard and briskly left the room, leaving the two boys bewildered.

They realized that pursuing an irritated Katara would provide few if no answers, so they instead decided to follow her instructions. When Sokka and Aang finally discovered Zuko in the courtyard, the word confused didn't even come close to how they felt. They observed Zuko in bewilderment as the ice imprisoned prince struggled to free himself from his freezing encasement, momentarily unaware of the bystanders. As Sokka ran to grab his boomerang, Aang interrupted Zuko's struggle in order to question him about how exactly he was trapped in ice. Yet, the older boy was silent for the most part.

Similar to Katara, Zuko was not in the best of moods. Thought his eyes did not radiate the same anger as her, he was clearly irritated. His frustration also seemed to be the cause for his disinterest in explaining the current situation. This troubled Aang and his pacifist ideals. _What on earth happened? Are they fighting again?_ the Avatar wondered as he compared the two benders moods.

Eventually Sokka returned with his boomerang and was able to crack open Zuko's icy prison. Without a word, the still shivering prince slowly stood up and weakly walked away, arms wrapped tightly around himself. Just as he was about to reach the door that led inside, Aang desperately tried again to coax at least one answer out of him.

"Come on Zuko, just tell us how you got trapped in that ice," he eagerly prodded.

Without turning around to face the Avatar, Zuko deeply sighed before dryly stating, "I'm a waterbender now," and marching inside.

When the prince had retired, indicated by a slamming door, Aang and Sokka continued to bathe in the moonlight as they looked at each other in disbelief. Standing in the midst of Zuko's shattered ice, the pair was beyond words. Katara being a firebender was unfortunate and terrible, but Zuko being a waterbender? That was a whole new level of bad.

Returning to the present, Sokka just shrugged before swallowing the food in his mouth. "I don't know, they clearly think they're too cool now to talk to us since they got their new, fancy bending," he said before taking another bite of his lunch.

Aang frowned. "Something tells me they're not enjoying this Sokka," he replied. With Katara's panic attack, and Zuko's cold attitude, The Avatar knew the older boy had to be joking.

"I just can't believe that Sparky is a waterbender now," Toph interjected, joining the conversation. "I mean, imagine what Sozin would think if he knew his great grandson was going to turn into one. Better yet, what the world would think if Zuko becomes Fire Lord. Oh the irony!" she laughed.

Suki gave Toph a pointed look as she entered the room, carrying her own bowl of rice. "Toph that's not funny," she admonished, "I'm sure Zuko is very stressed right now, as is Katara,"

"Suki's right, they're probably freaking out since they can't exactly defend themselves without their usual bending," Aang said, looking down into his porcelain bowl with uneasiness. "A Fire Nation fleet could show up any moment and they would be in danger".

"Zuko still has his swords, remember?" Sokka offered.

"And Katara?" Aang responded.

Sokka shrugged and used his chopsticks to chase the remaining rice around the bowl. "Well, we can always count on her ability to chastise the firebenders to death".

"You're right about that," Toph interjected.

"But what I want to know is why they seem to be fighting with each other," Sokka wondered aloud. "I get that they're not exactly the best of friends, but the guy's tried so hard for her to accept him." He ate another bite of rice and proceeded to continue his observation. "He's wisked his life to save er, elped er track down our mother's killer, chased afer her when she wandered off into the jungle, and hopefully tried to stop er irebending diwemma," the Water Tribe boy tried to explain despite his full mouth.

"What?" Aang said in puzzlement.

Sokka finally swallowed and crossed his arms. "What I'm trying to say is that Katara needs to be easier on Zuko and stop fighting with the poor guy."

Toph laughed and leaned back on her arms. "Honestly, when it comes to the two of them, we should be curious when they're _not_ fighting."

Aang looked up in surprise. "But I thought they sorted things out?"

Toph's back met the floor and she put her arms behind her head. "Yeah, because Katara spying on Zuko during your lessons is enough evidence of how they _sorted things out_," Toph replied, smugly facing the ceiling.

The airbender's gray eyes enlarged as he stared at the Earth Kingdom girl. "Are you serious?" he questioned.

"Of course Twinkletoes! Every time my feet feel you and Zuko walk out into the courtyard, Katara's usually not too far behind. My best guess is that she still doesn't completely trust him."

The Avatar was stunned. Katara still had issues with Zuko? Sure they were fighting right now, but Aang had felt assured that they had both put their pasts behind them. He had been so pleased when Katara hugged Zuko and finally forgave him for all his wrongdoings. At her gesture, Aang was filled with a fresh happiness at the thought of how past grudges would no longer weigh the Gaang down. Learning the startling news from Toph made the young Avatar doubt whether he truly understood his team as well as he thought he had. Sure he wanted to win the war and restore balance, but at the end of the day he was also a friend who just wanted his companions to get along with each other.

"This is bad, really bad. Especially considering Katara seems to outright hate him again!" Aang explained with a deepening frown.

"Yeah, I mean who's to say she may not abandon him on the battlefield if he got hurt?" Sokka wondered.

"Sokka!" everyone yelled, surprised at the Water Tribe boy's assumption.

"What! It's just an observation!" he exclaimed in defense.

Aang sighed and folded his hands together. "We all know that's not true, Katara would never turn her back on those who need her."

Sokka shook his head as he looked at the Avatar. "Yeah, but grudge holding Katara may think a little differently," he pointed out. He was aware that his sister was notorious for holding grudges. At one point she even held a longstanding grudge against their own father for leaving them behind. Though he ultimately did this to protect them, Katara was immensely furious with him for years.

"She did end up asking us to help Zuko even though she was mad at him though," Aang countered.

"Yes, but who knows how long she left him out there before she looked for help!"

"That doesn't matter, the importa-"

"Will you both cut it out, you're giving me a headache!" Toph yelled, interrupting the argument and sitting up. "What you guys are both trying to point out is the exact same thing: Katara and Zuko's relationship is unhealthy and could have consequences".

Aang threw his hands into the air in frustration. "Then what exactly do you suggest?" he questioned.

"Simple, they should learn to work with one another more often," Toph calmly replied.

Aang inclined his bald head to the side in wonder. "How are they supposed to manage that?"

"Yeah, especially considering they won't even be seen in the same room!" Sokka added.

Toph slapped her forehead. "Once again, are you guys blind! The plan is simple, Katara now needs a firebending instructor and Zuko needs a waterbending one." She paused for a moment waiting for a reaction, but heavily sighed when she heard none. "Is this making any sense whatsoever?" she finally asked.

"So what you're saying is that they should just teach each other?" Suki offered.

"Ohhhh," Aang and Sokka said in unison.

Toph threw her hands up in the air. "Exactly! Not only would they no longer be defenseless, but hopefully they could learn to get along. If anything, this curse might at least be good for something."

"One problem," Sokka said, holding up his index finger, "How exactly are they going to agree to this?"

The earthbending girl just smiled mischievously in return. "I think I might have plan," she turned to Aang, "How good are your acting skills Twinkletoes?"

Aang smiled in excitement. "I'd say they're as good as you need them to be!" he happily replied.

"Perfect" Toph said standing up. "Let's get started then, shall we?"

* * *

><p><em>Why must it be freezing all of the time?<em> Zuko wondered as he wrapped his Fire Nation cloak tighter around himself, as he comfortably sat on his bed. Since waking up after a previously restless night, Zuko was finally beginning to feel the miniscule differences that came with being a waterbender. For one, the waves on the beach constantly drew his attention for no apparent reason. It was almost like the water was yelling "I'm here if you need me!" all morning. Even if he submitted to the sea's beckoning, he knew there was nothing he could do. It's not like he knew how to waterbend.

Probably the most irritating aspect of being a waterbender for the prince was the consistent cold he felt no matter how stuffy it was in his room. Without his internal flame, Zuko could no longer feel the warmth that regulated his body temperature. He realized that he shouldn't have been so cold, but rather his body was just adjusting to the loss of its own heat source. _How on earth do waterbenders handle this on top of the freezing temperatures they live in?_

After waking up late into the morning, Zuko remained in his room as he tried to discern how he was going to escape his predicament. _Is this temporary? _He wondered. _Should I just find that stupid monkey?_ The Fire Prince realized that the latter idea would probably be a dangerous if not a hopeless attempt at fixing his bending. The spirit already threatened him and decided to do the next best thing besides killing him. Surely the spirit could do far worse if he returned. _Then again, it doesn't get much worse than this…_

Zuko sighed and fell backwards onto his mattress before staring up at the intricate ceiling. _Imagine what Azula's going to think when she hunts us down and realizes I can't bend_ he sourly thought. Suddenly he shot up into a sitting position again when he realized this. Zuko's golden eyes widened as he imagined the humiliation that would come with such an encounter. Not only that, but there was a slim chance he would even escape with his life if his sister decide to fight him. The prince knew that he wasn't completely defenseless, just highly untrained. Despite yelling at Katara and insisting that he could never be a waterbender, he knew it was only a matter of time before he had to recant the statement and start a new life with his bending. No matter how much he disliked the idea.

Zuko was aware that he couldn't remain powerless for the rest of his life just because he had something against bending an element so unlike his own. The prince always took pride in calling himself a firebender despite his denouncement of his country's plans and beliefs pertaining to the rest of the world. If anything, he was more pleased to be a firebender after he learned that fire was so much more than just a means to harm others. It was life.

Zuko figured that asking Katara for lessons was completely out of the question considering her behavior last night. He also dared not admit just how much he truly needed her help. However, that didn't mean he couldn't try teaching himself. Zuko recalled how Katara knew very little waterbending when he first encountered her, yet she had gradually became stronger on her own. Maybe he could do the same?

For once, the prince allowed his waterbending senses to claim dominance as they tugged him in the direction of water. Before long he discovered a previously abandoned cup of water sitting on his wooden desk. He curiously stared into the cup, unsure of how to go about bending its contents.

_What would Katara do?_

He thought of how Katara called upon grace when she waterbended, allowing her arms and fingers to be as fluid as the water she commanded. Such grace was omitted for more powerful movements in firebending, leaving Zuko clueless as to how he was supposed to emulate the waterbender's more loose actions. He scoured his mind for past observations of Katara's waterbending, but found only vague memories. He didn't exactly have time nor cared to take notes during the heat of battle.

Giving up on remembering anything helpful, Zuko settled on just figuring out how to waterbend through trial and error. First he made his right hand flat with his palm facing downwards before slowly waving it over the water. Nothing happened. He did this with his left hand. Again nothing happened. He did this simultaneously with both hands. Unsurprisingly, nothing happened.

He started desperately flinging his hands in every which way."Arggh!" he yelled in frustration as the water remained placid as ever. "This is impossible!"

Suddenly a familiar cracking sound was heard.

Zuko looked down into the cup and found that the water had become completely frozen. He sighed. "Is this all I'm good for? Freezing things?" he asked aloud.

"Ribbit"

The prince nearly jumped out of skin when he heard the unexpected sound. _What was that?_ He wondered. Turning to the direction of the noise he found none other than a badger-frog sitting upon his windowsill. If badger-frogs could talk, he knew the creature would be hysterically laughing at his futile attempts at waterbending.

"Ribbit," it repeated.

"Great, it's you again," he addressed the creature. "Don't suppose you know anything about waterbending?" he asked dryly. _Here I go again… talking to badger-frogs…_

"Ribbit"

"Yeah, thought so," Zuko replied while folding his arms and looking away.

Zuko observed the strange badger-frog for a few moments, wondering whether it was the same one he had encountered in the Western Air Temple. However he dismissed this idea when he remembered that his prior location was many miles away.

Zuko studied the strange animal once more. "It's pretty weird how your kind seems to like finding me so much," he plainly stated. "I mean-"

The prince paused in his explanation when he suddenly heard quick footsteps that sounded outside of his room in the hallway. Before Zuko could contemplate who it was, the doorknob turned with a couple squeaks and promptly opened, revealing a beaming Aang. "Hey Zuko!" he called as he closed the door and moved towards the former firebender. With lighting fast speed, Zuko turned away from the creature he was previously conversing with in order to fully face Aang.

"Wait a second," Aang muttered as he squinted his usually large eyes and glanced around the room. "Were you just talking to someone?" he wondered.

"What?" Zuko responded despite knowing very well that he had just been speaking with a badger-frog. This of course was information that the prince felt no inclination to divulge, even to the Avatar himself. The last thing Team Avatar needed to know about Zuko was that an animal functioned as his therapist when his Uncle wasn't around for him to complain to.

Zuko shot a quick glance over his shoulder at the window, but was stunned to find that the badger-frog had disappeared. Shaking of the oddity of the situation, Zuko stiffly replied "You must be imaging things".

Aang scratched his head. "But I could have swor-"

"There's clearly no one else here. Now is there anything I can help you with?" Zuko asked trying to change the topic of the conversation.

Aang beamed, remembering why he came. "Actually yes, I was wondering whether we could still have a firebending lesson today!" he said as his eager gray eyes looked up at the older boy.

Zuko ran his hand across his face and let it settle on his eyes. "I thought I told you… I can't firebend anymore. How do you expect me to teach you when I can't even bend?" he asked, sounding defeated.

Aang shook his head and continued to smile. "That doesn't matter! You can still teach me! Just because you can't bend fire doesn't mean you can't still show me new forms and correct my stances," he earnestly explained. "Besides, you said you wanted to help me win this war, so you can't give up on me now. The comet is just around the corner!" the airbender pleaded.

"I don't know Aang…"

"Oh come on!" Aang pointed at the former firebender in determination, "The Zuko I know wouldn't give up so easily. He would brush off the minor setback and keep moving forward."

The older boy removed his palm from his face when he heard Aang's words. "Minor setback?" he groaned. "I'm pretty sure becoming a waterbender is far from _minor_."

Zuko had forgotten just how much the optimism of his new companions seemed to disagree with him.

"It might be," Aang responded, brushing off the reality of the situation, "but you need to put it aside and keep training me. I realize this isn't an easy change, but I still need to save to world and everything."

Processing Aang's words, Zuko realized that he had been acting like a stubborn teenager sulking around in his room when the world needed him to resume his responsibilities. Zuko disliked the idea of appearing weak in any circumstance and realized that that was exactly what he had been doing since the moment he became a waterbender. This weakness stemmed from both his powerless and overall frustration at the situation.

Despite these feelings, Zuko knew that he still needed to be strong for Aang's sake. At the end of the day it didn't matter what happened to him as long as the Avatar was able to fulfill his mission, a mission that required his assistance.

_No more_ he thought. _It's still my duty to help Aang; I can't let my worries weigh me down._

Zuko crossed his arms and set his eyes on Aang, his mind made up. "Well what are you doing standing here? You should have done 20 hot-squats by the time I reach the courtyard," he said before walking around Aang and heading out the door. "And for your information, I'm walking there right now."

Aang grinned before easily allowing his airbending to propel him forward and ahead of Zuko.

* * *

><p>"Come on Aang, just thirty more hot squats!" Zuko yelled as the Avatar breathed in exhaustion.<p>

Aang looked up at the prince. "But you said that twenty hot squats ago!"

"If you don't have the endurance, then your firebending will quickly lose power. Exerting yourself is the only way to become aware of how you maintain proper breath control," he stiffly replied.

Aang was beginning to regret telling off Jeong Jeong for not allowing him more action when he first learned firebending. Compared to the old master, Zuko was relentless as he barked orders and demanded that Aang consistently push himself. He only wished that the older boy could give him more breaks like Katara usually did during waterbending practice.

_But I can't be thinking about that right now, I need to carry out the plan_ Aang remembered.

Before Zuko could react, Aang collapsed on the courtyard pavement with a huff and rested his arms on his tired knees. As he panted heavily, he could feel the prince's critical eyes taking in his exhausted form.

Zuko looked down at Aang with stern golden eyes. "This is no time for a break. The comet is just around the corner and-"

"I know I know, just five minutes okay?" Aang interrupted in his most pleading tone. He then proceeded to stare hopefully at the Fire Prince, not breaking eye contact even when the older boy rolled his eyes.

Zuko opened his mouth as if he was about to argue, but then deeply sighed instead and plopped down onto the ground next to his pupil. "Fine, but just remember you're the one who dragged me out here".

"No worries, I haven't forgotten about the time crunch we're on" Aang lightly replied.

Zuko just grunted in response and looked off into the distance with hard eyes. Though the prince attempted to appear calm for his sake, the Avatar was well aware of the storm that brewed within him. Aang knew that Zuko was worried even if he would never admit it. That's why he needed to help him. Not just because he was fighting on their side or teaching him firebending, but because the young man had become someone he considered a friend.

"So have you tried waterbending again?" Aang tentatively asked, turning to look at the former firebender.

Zuko distant stare increased in intensity as if the horizon suddenly became the most interesting thing in the world.

Aang sighed noticing just how truly troubled the Fire Prince was. "Look, if there is anyone you can talk to about learning new bending… it's probably me since I had to learn, well… all four of them," he explained. The Avatar knew how frustrating it could be to master an entirely new element. It was like you were back at step one and had to awkwardly experience all the struggles that came with a new bending style. Only he had to do it four times.

"What's there to talk about?" Zuko suddenly said. "It's not like I'll be learning waterbending anytime soon. Katara doesn't really want to talk to me right now".

"I'm sure she'll come around. She always does," Aang replied hopefully. "You patched things up with her once, I'm sure you can do it again".

"You make it sound easy," Zuko dryly responded. "To do that last time I had to go on a two day man hunt with her, so unless there is anyone else she needs to find, I'm out of options," he finished.

"So what you're saying is that you're positive Katara won't teach you?"

"Pretty much"

Aang shook his head and smiled at Zuko's response. "Well did you forget? Katara isn't the only waterbender present".

Zuko quickly turned his shaggy head to look at Aang with wide desperate eyes, having forgotten that the younger boy was also a waterbender.

_Gotcha_ Aang thought in triumph.

"So what are you saying?" Zuko slowly asked.

"I'm saying I could teach you a thing or two about waterbending" Aang happily replied. "It'll be like a tradeoff, you teach me and I teach you!"

At the sound of Aang's words, the life in Zuko's eyes dimmed as if considering something and he settled back into his previous position with a troubled look on his face. "I'm not sure if I'm really cut out for it though. Sokka gets along fine using his weapons, I'm sure if I used my dao swords more often things would be okay," he stated, trying to convince himself of his words validity.

"But you have such a powerful ability, why waste it?" Aang prodded.

Zuko sighed before looking at the Avatar. "Because I'm a… well… I used to be a firebender. Learning waterbending would be very difficult if not impossible task" he said sourly. "Fire and water are complete opposites."

Seeing the Fire Prince so defeated was something that Aang never thought he would witness. He could tell that the boy itched to learn waterbending, his earlier reaction was proof enough. Yet Zuko had returned to his sulking mood, while all the fight left his eyes. If this was the way Zuko was going to be from now on after losing his fire, Aang realized that the Zuko he knew and the Zuko sitting in front of him were two very different people.

"You know, I thought the same thing when I started earthbending. Earth is the opposite of air so everything about its bending style is very different from what I'm used to. Learning to bend earth was by far the most difficult and frustrating element to master. Even now I think I'm a better firebender than earthbender even though I haven't been learning it very long," Aang explained.

"So I may never become a good waterbender is what you're saying?" Zuko asked with a hint of bite in his voice.

"No!" Aang responded as he quickly shook his head. "I'm just trying to say that despite all the struggles and doubts I had about earthbending, I never gave up. Just because it's not my favorite bending style also doesn't mean I can't bend," the airbender finished as he bended a piece of rock out of the pavement to prove his point. "Maybe I can at least show you a couple things. What do you say?" Aang asked, refusing to give up on Zuko.

"I don't know-"

"Come on! You might be a natural!"

"I seriously doubt that"

"But you can protect yourself!"

Zuko paused and considered the Avatar's last statement. Aang just continued to look expectantly at him, anticipating his answer as he watched as the older boy seemed to fight with himself. Aang shamefully remembered how Toph had instructed him to use Zuko's current vulnerability to his advantage, no matter how opposed he was to the idea. Manipulating the prince was something he wasn't proud of, but if it meant helping a friend, then maybe it couldn't be so bad.

"I really need to stop letting you talk me into things," Zuko muttered before pausing. "Do you really think I have a shot at this whole waterbending thing?" Zuko spoke.

Aang smiled, realizing that Zuko was finally falling into synch with the plan. "Of course, we both know that you're far too stubborn to let something like waterbending beat you."

"Fine then-"he said hesitantly "I'll let you teach me".

"Excellent!" Aang said as he shot up onto his feet. "Let's get started!"

* * *

><p>A loud splash was heard as Katara soaked another towel in a bucket of water that she had to manually fill. Unlike Zuko, Katara had woken up at the crack at dawn as if somebody had physically shaken her form and demanded she rise. Compared to previous mornings, she somehow felt energized by the rays of sunlight that snaked their way into her room, urging her to be active. Yet all she could do was lay in bed with a cool towel draped across her forehead in an effort to banish the heat she was experiencing. <em>Perks of being a firebender I suppose<em> she thought.

Katara knew that she should have set about making breakfast when she awoke, but she was just worried about handling anything at this point. After nearly burning the house down, the Water Tribe girl discerned that she needed to keep a tight grip on her emotions before it was safe to leave her room. Zuko had mentioned that firebending was fueled by emotions, therefore until her mind settled down; her emotions could start a bonfire at any moment.

Zuko…

The very thought of his name made her frustrated. Just as things were getting better for her, Zuko turned around and freaked out when he realized that he was a waterbender. Katara was well aware that gaining new bending was far from comforting; yet she was surprised that he had lashed out at her. Not only that, but he firmly stated that he could never be a waterbender. Katara didn't wish to be a firebender, but she was going to have to learn whether she wanted to or not. She felt that Zuko had no right to complain about being a waterbender. Unlike water, fire was a highly dangerous element handle.

_Maybe Aang can teach me_ she wondered. _He's not a master, but he probably knows enough about firebending to teach me more about basic control._

Yet, was control all she truly wanted? If she was going to protect Aang and her friends, Katara knew she needed to learn more than basic control. She needed to learn how to fight, and fast. The only problem was that she was afraid of learning how to bend fire offensively. Offensive firebending had brought so much pain upon both her and her people. Katara inwardly cringed at the idea of mastering it.

Suddenly, a harsh rapping at her door banished her musings. She turned her clammy face towards the thick wood and mumbled an uncertain, "Come in".

At her reply, the intricate doorknob twisted and Toph urgently opened the door and walked into the room. "Sugar Queen you need to check out what my feet have discovered," the earthbender announced excitedly as she neared Katara.

"And what exactly have your feet found this time?" Katara replied as she dabbed her forehead with the damp towel.

Toph smiled and crossed her arms. "Twinkletoes is teaching Sparky how to waterbend!" she responded.

Instantly the towel that Katara had been holding onto slipped out of her limp fingers and fell onto the floor with a loud "plop".

She couldn't believe it!

After all the grief Zuko gave her about learning to waterbend he just changes his mind and asks Aang for help! Katara had been so sure that the Fire Prince would rather die than learn waterbending, yet his change of attitude was startling. Katara was convinced that she would never understand what went on in Zuko's head. It would seem that just as quickly his temper could be brought on, so could his opinions change.

Katara felt that she needed to see if Zuko was really training with Aang. She was still a little skeptical, and had to validate if what the earthbender had told her was true, no matter how farfetched it may be. And of course the sight of the Fire Prince bending _any_ water was surely a sight to behold. Unable to subdue her curiosity any longer, she asked Toph, "Where are they?"

Toph pointed towards where she felt a slight breeze sneaking into the room. "Practicing in the courtyard, take a look," she said gesturing to the window.

Katara got off her bed and swiftly moved towards the window before pulling aside the silken curtains. When Katara moved her cerulean eyes towards the two figures practicing, she became torn between hysterically laughing and giving herself the word's hardest face-palm.

_What on earth is Aang trying to teach him!_

Zuko's red-clad form was randomly zipping around the courtyard while swaying his arms from side to side and spinning every so often. Katara didn't know what to make of Zuko's strange movements. She couldn't even compare what she was observing to dancing because he was so rigid and awkward in his movements. The only thing the former firebender reminded her of was a crazed person desperately trying to swat a hornet-fly.

Against her will, a laugh nearly escaped her mouth before she quickly covered it in order to hide her position. The last thing she needed was Zuko to look up and find her observing him.

"What's going on Sweetness?" Toph asked joining her at the window. "How is Twinkletoes doing?"

Katara continued to watch Zuko and his strange movements. "Honestly, I have no idea what he's been teaching Zuko. It pretty painful to watch actually" she sarcastically responded.

"Ugh my feet can't see from up here, I'm heading back downstairs for the show," Toph grumpily replied. "You wanna come?"

"I can see everything better up here," Katara said, refusing to tear her eyes away from Zuko's _lesson_.

"Suit yourself," Toph plainly stated before leaving the room.

Katara knew Aang was a good kid and had his heart in the right place trying to help Zuko, but for the life of her she couldn't even tell if what he was showing Zuko was even waterbending!

Suddenly Zuko stopped whatever it was he was doing when Aang called out to him. Realizing that they were talking, Katara cupped her ear to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"Okay Zuko, when you get close to this bucket of water just shove your hands forward and spin around three times!" she heard Aang cry from below.

Zuko eyed the bucket warily. "Are you sure this move will work? Nothing happened when you showed me the last one," he suspiciously wondered.

"Of course! Katara does this move all the time! It's called the water whip," the Avatar said.

_What is he saying! That's not how you do a water whip!_ Katara's mind screamed.

Zuko scratched his head and pondered Aang's words. "Yeah… I think I've heard of that move".

Aang smiled and gestured to the bucket. "Great, why don't you give it a try then?" he offered.

"Okay…" Zuko replied as Katara watched as he concentrated on the water hiding within the wooden bucket. Just as Aang instructed, Zuko shoved his arms forward with more force than necessary and spun around three times, nearly losing his footing on the last spin. When Zuko had finished his strange bending, he hesitantly turned to see if the water had moved, but angrily groaned when he realized it hadn't even shifted an inch.

"Aang why isn't this working!" he demanded.

Aang held his hands up to calm the fuming boy. "Hey not everybody gets it on their first try," he assured Zuko.

_What is Aang saying? He can't honestly think that Zuko will ever be able to create a water whip with those terrible techniques!_

"Aang have you even taught other people how to bend before?" the prince asked in frustration.

"Of course I have, back in the Air-"

"But this isn't airbending Aang," Zuko stiffly cut off the Avatar. "This is waterbending, which I assume is very different."

_He's got a point._

"Of course they're different, but you just need to try harder! Have you tried spinning more? Sometimes that does the trick," Aang replied.

"Ugh!" Zuko growled before stomping away from the bucket of water. "This is just plain pathetic!" he berated himself.

Aang shook his head and moved towards Zuko to put a calming hand on the taller boy's shoulder. "You just need to let all your worries flow out of your mind like water. Like Katara always taught me, you must _be_ the water Zuko. Be the water," the Avatar continued in a transcendent voice.

_I don't say that!_ Katara thought before quickly closing the curtains and turning away from her window. She then began to pace around her room, her bare feet sliding across the smooth floor. After everything she had seen, the Water Tribe girl firmly concluded that Aang evidently didn't know a thing about how to teach waterbending. He was a talented kid and his heart was in the right place, but she realized that at the rate he was going he was probably doing more harm than good by training Zuko. If anything he was instilling in him bad habits. In truth, she had never really seen Aang teach very often, yet Katara was immediately convinced that it wasn't his calling. Now that she realized that the Aang would be unable to help Zuko, she considered the only other person who possibly could: herself.

Would Katara train him if he asked her? Zuko hadn't actively sought her help, but after witnessing his poor attempts at waterbending, she realized that maybe, just maybe, a small part of him was willing to get over his pride and learn something new. Despite being frustrated with his own failures, Zuko also seemed rather determined not to give up.

There was also the matter of who would teach her firebending. After witnessing Aang's teaching skills she assumed that the Avatar would also likely be a poor firebending instructor. If she was going to be able to gain more control over her abilities she knew that only Zuko would be able to aid her. His previous little lesson from last night was evidence enough.

Whether Katara wanted to admit it or not, she realized that they truly needed each other to work through their bending dilemma. She walked back over to the window and slightly parted the curtains to find Zuko resuming his strange posture and trying the "water whip" again. She deeply sighed at Zuko's attempts and frowned at the overall situation the two of them were in. It was only a matter of time before one of them was going to have to repress their pride and ask for help.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hey guys I'm alive! I'm really sorry I haven't updated lately, but school has been really hectic! Anyway, I hope you guys liked this chapter. I know Katara and Zuko aren't training each other yet, but trust me, it's coming. I just needed to clear up why they wouldn't just train with Aang if they had a problem with each other._

_ I really appreciate all the flattering reviews and they warm my heart! Please continue to review in anyway they you can, and know that even constructive criticism is appreciated._


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